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Copyright 1911, by 
GARRETT BROWN 
All Rights Reserved 



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THIS BOOK IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED TO 

ALL AMERICAN CHILDREN 

(THE FOUNDATION UPON WHICH RESTS THE FUTURE 
OF OUR GREAT COUNTRY). AMONG WHOM THE 
AUTHOR ESPECIALLY NAMES HIS GRANDSON. 
WILLIS VICTOR ELLIOTT, JUNIOR 


I 


AUTHOR’S PREFACE. 


Bare facts do not satisfy the growing and expanding mind. 

The mental buoyancy of youth essays to grasp all things. 

No father or mother who has watched the growth and develop- 
ment of a child’s mind will deny that the prime factor for enlarge- 
ment is imagination. 

Youth devoid of lively imagination drifts into gloomy and 
brooding temperament. 

We must look mainly to imagination for the kindling of the 
fires of optimism and enthusiasm — the awakening of hope and ambi- 
tion — in the minds of the young. 

Hence, purely imaginative stories, though they disregard scien- 
tific and patent facts, which point a moral, afford the best possible 
foundation for mind-expansion. 

Who has been made worse by the myth of Santa Claus, or the 
exaggerated and grotesque story of Jack the Giant-Killer? 

The hope of the author is that American Fairy Tales may find 
a place in the “Fairy- Literature” of his own great country — the 
United States. 

However, the stories were written upon the urgent demand of six 
children who had previously exhausted the world’s supply of Fairy 
Tales, and not with any view of fame or fortune. 

If even a few other children succeed in getting as much amuse- 
ment and positive benefits from American Fairy Tales as his have 
derived, the writer will feel amply rewarded. 


THE AUTHOR. 














CONTENTS 


LITTLE THUNDER AND DARK CLOUD. 

DEW DRDP AND BREEZE. 

THE TAN-RAH5 AND THE PEETDDT5. 
NILEETA AND TIM TDM. 
MONTANAJHE TU5KAN. 
KAVA NARA.ATU5KAN PRINCE55. 
NIAGARA FALL5. 

THE GIANT DDBARB. 
IBEC AND AURORA. 
IDDJHE ICHO. 
5TDRH.THE 50NDFTHE NDRTH WIND. 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Facing Page 

Little Thunder seized the bough. 1 

A door flew open in its base 4 

Two beautiful fairies bowed before her. 6 

He saw the familiar-looking huts 10 

He would meet Dew Drop playing on a spider’s web. 1 3 

The old King flew into a rage 14 

A beautiful fairy, called Mist, appeared 16 

Sent an arrow into his eye, killing him instantly 19 

The Black Eagle found the River Fairy seated upon a poplar leaf.. 26 

The fairy stood on the leaf of a lily, and every crawfish was silent 30 

An immense eagle swooped down upon her. 37 

Nilo sat down and wept 42 

He rose up into the air and sailed away 44 

They advanced and bowed before her 50 

Montana picked up Zuma’s scattered flowers 55 

He sentenced him to be banished to the forest of Haba 58 

Montana threw the cannon-cracker just as the old witch landed 62 

The fairies that helped him before, appeared 67 

Stretching out its wings the great bird ran. 70 

It caught old Wong Wong’s neck and arm 72 

The red men began to break and run 75 

The King poured liquid into the holes in their heads 78 

Crushed the skull of the King 80 

Buried in an erect position - 83 

She would go forth alone and roam over the mountains 86 

On opening his eyes he beheld a little girl, standing near him 89 

Standing before him with raised knife 98 

Then a furious fight began. — — 101 

Coming down from the throne, the King spoke 1 12 

They stopped in front of a large whitish slab 1 14 

“Oh, Oh, Oh! Is it you, Ido?” 120 

He found his father apparently in a deep sleep 123 

In a few moments he hooked an enormous catfish 1 30 


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. UST above the spot where the Red River empties its muddy 
waters into the Mississippi, in that part of the United States 
now known as Louisiana, there once lived a famous tribe 
of Indians called the Ouichataws. 

^ “ In the early history of these Indians, they were 

noted for their immense size, and great strength. They were almost 
constantly at war with other tribes around them, and were nearly 
always victorious in their battles. 

It is said that among the laws of this tribe, there was one, something 
like the old Spartan rule, which provided that every male child, under 
ten years old, who was in any manner deformed, or that showed signs 
of disease which might prevent him from becoming a strong and healthy 
warrior, should be put to death. 

There was this difference, however, in the case of a son of a chief; 
instead of being put to death, his father might, if he chose, set him adrift 
on the river. That was to place him in a canoe and push him out into 
the swift current of the great muddy stream; a thing which usually 
meant the same as death to the poor little fellow. 

There was once a great chief of the Ouichataws, known as Big 
Thunder, who had two wives. (In those days it was lawful to marry 
more than one wife.) Big Thunder’s favorite wife gave him the first 
son, whom he named Little Thunder; and his other wife gave him a 
son, whom he called Dark Cloud. They were both strong and 
healthy babies, and the old chief was very proud of them. He pre- 


i 


i 


2 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


tended that he cared as much for one as for the other, but it was quite 
plain that Little Thunder was his favorite. 

As these two little Indian boys grew up, they were taught to shoot 
with the bow and arrow, to throw the tomahawk, swim in the turbu- 
lent river, ride the wild horses, and chase the deer that abounded in 
Louisiana in those days. 

The mother of Dark Cloud was envious of Little Thunder, be- 
cause he would some day become chief, a position which she coveted 
for her own child. Even when Dark Cloud was quite a small boy, his 
wicked mother would take him aside, and tell him he was much 
stronger and much better fitted to be a chief than his brother. She 
would even hint that it would be a good thing for Dark Cloud if Little 
Thunder should die. She continued to poison his mind with such 
thoughts, until he, too, learned to hate Little Thunder, and wish him 
dead. 

When the two boys were about twelve years old — there was but 
a few months difference in their ages — they would often play “squirrel”. 
One would climb the large magnolia tree in front of their wigwam, 
and the other would go up after him. Then there would be a race 
through the branches until the “squirrel” — the one that went up first 
— was caught. One day when they were thus playing, and Little 
Thunder had gone up the tree, the mother of Dark Cloud said to 
him: 

“What a good thing it would be for you if Little Thunder should 
happen to fall.” 

There was a cruel, mean look in her black eyes; and Dark Cloud 
understood the hint. Hurrying up the tree, he chased Little 
Thunder from limb to limb, forcing him to the very top, where he 
soon overtook him, and cried out “Squirrel!” That meant the “squir- 
rel” had been caught, and the game was over. Tired out with the 
chase, they sat side by side to rest. While panting for breath, the 
words of Dark Cloud’s mother came into his mind, and his little heart 
grew black with envy. Without uttering a word, and without any 
warning, he deliberately pushed Little Thunder from his seat, sending 
him headlong to the ground, fifty feet below. Dark Cloud’s mother 


LITTLE THUNDER AND DARK CLOUD 


3 


had seen it all. She picked up the almost lifeless body of Little 
Thunder, and bore it into the wigwam, telling his mother he had ac- 
cidentally fallen. Dark Cloud hurried down, went into the wigwam, 
looked at Little Thunder, lying there almost dead, but he neither 
wept nor made any pretense of sorrow. 

When the old chief returned from the hunt, and was told of the 
accident to his favorite son, he was as sorry as an Indian could be. 

Little Thunder’s mother nursed him constantly, through his long 
illness, and when the old Indian “medicine man” told her there was 
a chance for recovery, she was a very happy squaw. 

For six months Little Thunder lay on his pallet of bear skins, 
without speaking a word. In the seventh month, he began to improve, 
and grew stronger rapidly. As soon as he could talk he told his 
mother and father that Dark Cloud had purposely thrown him from 
the tree. They would not believe his statement, however, thinking 
the fall had injured his brain. When he finally became strong enough 
to walk, he was sensible for the first time of a large lump on his 
back, and that he could not stand erect. He was filled with horror 
at the discovery, knowing full well the fate that awaited the weak or 
crippled. 

Big Thunder knew his duty under the laws of his nation, and did 
not hesitate to perform it. Feeling that he could not deliberately kill 
his favorite son, he chose rather to set him adrift on the river. Taking 
an old canoe, which had long been cast aside, he smeared it with red 
mud — the Indian sign of a “drift” — and placing Little Thunder in 
it, he shoved it out into the swift current of the Mississippi River, turned 
his back and walked away. He was no doubt very sorry, but he 
did not show it. 

Little Thunder lay down in the bottom of the canoe, and closed 
his eyes; but he could not sleep. All day, and part of one night, he 
floated down the muddy stream, without once looking over the sides 
of his whirling craft. 

On the morning of the second day, he stood up and scanned the 
country around. There was not a living creature in sight. Before and 
behind him the great reddish river bubbled, eddying here and there, 
as its waters rolled on towards the sea. Suddenly, while rounding a 


4 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


bend, the little canoe rushed through a break in the river bank, — 
which is called a crevasse — and went flying into the woods, bumping 
against stumps and dragging under hanging limbs, now coming to 
a halt, now spurting off again, bump, bump, bump against the trees. 

Little Thunder had grown so tired that he did not care very much 
what became of him. He even dropped off to sleep in the midst of his 
danger. When he awoke his canoe was in tolerably still water, and, 
looking out, he found himself surrounded by a swarm of alligators. On 
seeing him they lashed the water with their tails, and made a rush 
for the canoe. They were crushing it between their teeth when Little 
Thunder jumped out, thinking to drown himself. Luckily, he fell upon 
the back of a huge fellow, which became frightened and darted under 
the boughs of an overhanging tree. Quick as lightning. Little Thunder 
seized the boughs and succeeded in pulling himself up on a strong limb, 
where he sat, for awhile, watching the alligators, peering at him, 
hungrily, out of their wicked little eyes! Crawling to the trunk of the 
tree, he made his way on another limb and jumped to the solid ground 
below. 

Striking into the forest, he was attracted by a loud noise. Going 
up to a patch of brush, from which the sound came, he found an im- 
mense stag, whose antlers had become tightly fastened in the bushes. 
Little Thunder’s first thought was to kill the stag, and satisfy his pinch- 
ing hunger. Picking up a large stone he started towards the struggling 
deer, when to his utter amazement, the stag spoke, saying : 

“Do not try to injure me; I am the Genius of the Woods. Help 
me out of my difficulty, and I may be able to do you a service.” 

Instantly Little Thunder went up to the stag, and set about liberat- 
ing him. As soon as he had freed him from the bushes, the stag turned 
to Little Thunder, a tender look in his great mellow eyes, and said : 

“Get on my back.” 

He obeyed without a word; and the stag went galloping off 
through the forest. After traveling for some hours, they came to 
an opening in the woods, where the earth was fairly covered with toad- 
stools. Here the stag stopped; and after looking about him to be 
sure that no one was near, he raised his left hind foot, and stamped the 
ground three times. Instantly all the toad-stools quivered and there was 



















LITTLE THUNDER AND DARK CLOUD 


5 


a cracking noise like the breaking of reeds. He stamped his right 
hind foot three times, and all the toad-stools except the very largest 
one, which stood in the middle of the treeless plot, sank into the ground. 
Next, he stamped his left fore foot three times, and the remaining 
toad-stool began to grow. The ground cracked all around, while it 
grew larger and larger, its hat-like top broadening, as it went up, until 
it looked like a shot tower, capped with a huge yellow umbrella. Then 
he stamped his right fore foot three times and the toad-stool ceased to 
grow, but quivered all over, like something alive, until presently a door 
flew open in its base, through which the stag bounded up a long wind- 
ing stairway, going to the very top before stopping. 

Little Thunder looked around with astonishment, when he found 
himself in the open air again. He was far above the tops of the great 
magnolia trees, whose bursting blossoms, in the midst of waving gray 
moss, looked like spots on a leopard skin. Seeing the stag bow his head. 
Little Thunder peeped to one side, and there seated in a little golden 
chair, he saw a wee White Mouse, stroking the stag’s big nose with 
her tiny fore paws. The stag presently said to the mouse: 

“My dear, I have brought you a friend; look on my back.’’ 

He turned his head aside, and the White Mouse silently watched 
Little Thunder quite a long time ; then, replying, said : 

“I did not know that men and boys were ever our friends. The 
men hunt you and kill your people; the boys dig my little folks out 
of their holes, and trap them when they can, and wantonly destroy 
their young babies wherever they are found.” 

“That’s true, my dear; but this boy has been a friend to me; 
maybe saved my life. I was deep in the forest to-day, and going into 
the thick grass to gather some berries for you, I got my beautiful horns 
fastened so tightly, that I doubt if I could ever have returned to you, 
but for the aid of the little fellow on my back. You know, my dear, 
the old saying: ‘A friend in need is a friend indeed.’ ” 

“Oh, then, he is truly our friend!” exclaimed the mouse; and, 
turning her bright, pink eyes towards Little Thunder, continued : “Get 
down and come to me, I must kiss you.” 

Little Thunder slid off the stag’s back, went forward and put his 


6 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


face close to the White Mouse, and she stroked him with her tiny fore 
paws, while kissing him on the cheek. 

“You look tired and hungry,” said the mouse. 

When Little Thunder told her that he had not eaten a mouthful 
for three days, she jumped out of her chair, and ran into a little hole. 
In a few moments she came back, bringing in her mouth a white wafer, 
not larger than a penny, which she offered to Little Thunder. He 
looked at it, but did not take the morsel. He failed to see how his 
hunger could be helped by such a tiny bit of whitish-looking stuff. 
The little mouse insisted so earnestly, however, he finally ate it, to please 
her. As soon as he had swallowed the wafer, his appetite was satis- 
fied, and he felt as well and strong as though he had eaten a gallon of 
Indian corn. 

He then told the stag and the mouse all about himself and his 
people; how he might have lived always with his father and mother; 
how some day, perhaps, become a great chief, had not his envious 
brother thrown him from a tree, thus making him a cripple, and an 
outcast. 

The White Mouse and the stag both shed tears at Little Thunder’s 
sad tale, and when he had finished the mouse said : 

“Why is it that human beings, who think themselves better than 
other animals, are so cruel, so envious, and often so much worse than 
brutes, which have no means of knowing right from wrong?” 

“My dear, I have often thought of that myself,” answered the 
stag. “I have seen men on the war-path; tribe fighting tribe; killing 
each other; killing innocent babies; killing helpless women, without 
any cause, as far as I could see.” 

“Well,” continued the mouse, turning to Little Thunder, “I 
could, perhaps, help you to get back to your people, and I might be 
able to help you become a great chief, but why should I? You would 
do as your people have always done, wage war upon the weak, and 
put to death the unfortunate and helpless.” 

Little Thunder could not understand such talk. He had never 
heard anything like it before in all his life. He had been taught to 
look upon war as his chief occupation, and that an Indian’s greatness 
was measured by the number of scalps he could show from the heads 








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LITTLE THUNDER AND DARK CLOUD 


7 


of his enemies. The little mouse’s talk made him feel serious, and 
her words seemed to touch a place in his heart, which he had not 
known of before. 

The mouse saw that he was troubled, and, presently, said: 

“I will help you get back to your people, on condition you promise 
me, that should you ever become chief of your tribe, you will never 
allow them to go on the war-path; that you will never wantonly kill 
anyone yourself, and that you will have the law of your people re- 
pealed, which compels parents to destroy weak and unfortunate chil- 
dren. 

“I will promise all,” said Little Thunder; “if you will allow me 
to kill my brother who threw me from the tree. I must have his blood 
if I ever get back.” 

“Never!” answered the mouse, firmly. “He is not as much to 
blame as another who put the black thought of your death in his 
heart. Even if he were, your hands must not be stained with your 
brother’s blood. He should be punished; but you must leave that 
to me. I will see that he, and all who are to blame for your mis- 
fortune, shall suffer.” 

It was a long time before Little Thunder would give in; but he 
finally agreed to every thing the mouse said. Then the little mouse 
ran into her hole, and brought out a small golden trumpet, on which 
she blew five blasts. Immediately a black cloud came up from the 
woods, and settled over the big toad-stool. The mouse blew the 
trumpet again, and two beautiful wood fairies, stepped down out of 
the cloud and bowed before her, saying: 

“Dear mother, what shall we do?” 

“Go to the mountains,” replied the mouse, “and bring here two 
slabs of polished marble, and a ball of golden twine.” 

The fairies sprang into the cloud, which instantly disappeared, 
and in less than an hour had returned with the marble slabs and the 
golden twine. 

The mouse then gave Little Thunder a small, brownish-looking 
pill, which he swallowed, and at once fell asleep. She made the 
fairies stretch him out on one of the slabs, and putting the other on 


8 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


top. (leaving his head and feet untouched), they bound him fast 
between the cold marble slabs. 

The mouse afterwards commanded the fairies to take Little 
Thunder to the enchanted castle, and keep him there until sent for. 
He was then hoisted up into the cloud, and quickly borne away. 

“We must now find Dark Cloud and his mother,” said the mouse 
to the stag. 

“Oh, I can do that,” replied the stag, and kissing the mouse, he 
bounded down the long stairway. Reaching the ground, he stamped 
his right fore foot once, and the door of the toad-stool closed. He 
stamped his left fore foot once, and the big toad-stool dropped down 
to the earth, looking no larger than a hat. He stamped his right hind 
foot once, and hundreds of other toad-stools sprang up. He stamped 
his left hind foot once, and a little bird flew from the woods and 
perched upon his horns. 

Little Thunder had told the stag where his people lived, and he 
set out in that direction. After traveling for three days with the little 
pop (the red-winged thrush, so abundant in Louisiana) sitting quietly 
on his big antlers, he came to a muddy river, and looking over saw the 
Indian village. He said to the pop: 

“Fly across, my sweet little bird, and find the Indian boy, Dark 
Cloud, and his mother; drop a feather upon each, then return to me.” 

(The pop’s feathers are said to be magical, and whoever touches 
one will have strange but pleasant dreams.) 

The pop said: 

“Click, click, click, clee, clee,” and flew away. 

Just before night, the stag saw the little bird sailing back, singing : 

“Click, click, click, clee, clee, clee.” 

When it lit upon the stag’s antlers, it said: 

“I found them under the willow tree, 

Caree, caree, caree, caree; 

I dropped a feather on them quick, 

Calick, calick, calick, calick,” 

So the stag knew the little pop had done as he had been bidden. 

That night Dark Cloud had a dream. He thought he had crossed 


LITTLE THUNDER AND DARK CLOUD 


9 


the river, and killed a stag, so large and so fat, that it was all he and 
his mother could do to carry the meat. Next morning, he told his 
mother about the dream; and, strangely enough, she had dreamed 
the same thing. These Indians had great faith in dreams; and 
Dark Cloud felt certain that his would come true. He had no 
difficulty in persuading his mother to get into a canoe and cross the 
river with him. 

Even before they landed, they saw an enormous stag, standing 
a little way back from the bank. Dark Cloud raised his bow, and 
would have sent an arrow at him, but, just at that moment, the stag 
ran behind some bushes. Presently, on reaching the shore, Dark Cloud 
and his mother bent down, and went creeping towards the stag; but 
when they would get almost within reach of him, he would gallop off, 
out of bow shot. Thus the hunt continued. Sometimes they were 
creeping in the thick brush; sometimes running rapidly in open woods, 
but never getting within arrow range. 

They did not know that when they would creep along, hidden 
from sight of the stag, the little pop fluttered over their heads, showing 
exactly where they were. 

The chase was kept up all day; and when night came on. Dark 
Cloud and his mother slept under the perfumed branches of a big 
magnolia tree. Next morning, as soon as it was light enough to see, 
there stood the stag just a few hundred yards away. They renewed 
the chase, pursuing him until they reached the opening where stood 
the toad-stools, when Dark Cloud’s mother said: 

“I am afraid we can never come up with that cunning old stag, 
and I think we should go back to our village.” 

But Dark Cloud wanted one more trial ; and, begging his mother 
to follow, started across the open space. Alas and alack ! they had 
entered the charmed garden of the White Mouse, and were, forthwith, 
turned into toad-stools! 

The pop flew away, saying: 

‘‘Caree, caree, caree, calick, calick, calick.” 

The stag made the great toad-stool spring up, and going to the 
White Mouse, told her how he had enticed Dark Cloud and his 
mother into the enchanted garden. The mouse kissed him and blew 


10 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


five blasts on her trumpet, calling the wood fairies, who soon appeared. 

They were ordered to bring Little Thunder to the toad-stool 
tower immediately. He was soon borne before the White Mouse, 
still bound between the marble slabs. The cords were loosened, the 
slabs taken away, and the mouse dipped up a dewdrop, from the 
cup of a magnolia blossom, touching it to the lips of Little Thunder. 
He yawned, then opened his eyes, and, presently, said : 

“Oh, what a sweet dream I’ve had. I saw my old father; and my 
mother kissed me.” 

“Well, you may be able to go home some day; who knows,” re- 
plied the mouse. 

“Ah, my back, my back!” exclaimed Little Thunder. 

“What is the matter with your back?” asked the White Mouse. 

“The hump! the hump;” replied Little Thunder, sorrowfully. 

“What hump?” inquired the mouse. 

Little Thunder was so puzzled that he 'got up, put his hand on 
his back, time and time again, looking still more bewildered, and 
somewhat frightened, when he found his back was straight and strong 
— the hump gone! 

“You have healed me!” exclaimed Little Thunder. “I know 
you did it; I am so happy! let me call you mother, as the fairies do. 
And oh, dear Mother Mouse, when I return to my tribe, if I ever shall, 
I am going to remember every word you have said to me, and teach 
my people to be good; for I see now that only the good can be happy.” 

The mouse was very much pleased with Little Thunder’s speech. 

The stag then related how he and the pop had gone to the Indian 
village, found Dark Cloud and his mother and brought them into the 
enchanted garden, whence they could never escape. 

“Now,” said the stag, “we have punished your enemies in a very 
much better way than if you had taken their lives.” 

Little Thunder was much affected by what the stag said, and 
experienced, once more, a strange sweet feeling within his bosom. 

The little mouse bade him come to her. 

“Stoop down,” she said, “and let me kiss you. I am going to 
send you away to your people, and I shall never see you again.” 

She kissed him tenderly, and -wept a little bit at the thought of 














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LITTLE THUNDER AND DARK CLOUD 


parting. She gave him some wafers, so that he would never become 
hungry, and a small crystal, which she told him he must always carry 
about him, and touch whenever a bad thought entered his mind. 

Then she said “Good-bye,” and ran into her hole. 

The tears were starting down the cheeks of Little Thunder, and 
it is believed that the little mouse ran away to keep him from seeing 
how much she, too, was weeping. Even the stag’s eyes were not dry. 
He had turned his head aside, and great big tears ran down his rough 
face. He arose, though, when the mouse went into her hole, shook 
the tears away, and told Little Thunder to get upon his back. 

Rushing down the winding stairway he stamped the ground once 
with each foot, and the big toad-stool dropped to the earth, look- 
ing much like the others. Going out into the garden, he pointed to two 
bows and arrows, which Little Thunder recognized at once. Near 
them stood two ugly toad-stools; one a little darker than the other. 
This was the last he ever saw of Dark Cloud and his wicked mother. 

The stag then galloped away, through the forest, never making a 
stop until he came to the river, where Dark Cloud had crossed over and 
left his canoe. He told Little Thunder to get down. 

Poor Little Thunder was miserable at the thought of parting from 
the kindest friends he had ever known. He sobbed aloud, and, taking 
the big stag by his rough horns, he kissed him until the stag, weeping 
bitterly, shook him off, and ran back into the forest and disappeared 
forever. 

Little Thunder paddled his canoe over the river. As he neared 
the village, he saw the familiar looking huts. There was the wigwam 
in which he had been born, his mother standing at the door, grinding 
corn on a large stone. She had recognized him, stopped her work, 
and was watching him with a startled look. She never moved a muscle 
until Little Thunder reached her. Then she felt his back, and patted 
his cheek, saying : 

“The Great Spirit has touched you.” 

She neither wept, nor made a noise, nor expressed much sur- 
prise; but her heart was as happy as an Indian’s heart could be, and 
Little Thunder knew it. 

At night, when Big Thunder came home and met his favorite 


12 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


son in the door of the wigwam, the hump gone from his back, he 
raised both hands and, looking towards the sky, exclaimed: 

“The Great Spirit is mightier than the Indian medicine man!” 

That night Little Thunder told his father and mother all about 
his adventure; and they both believed, to the last, that the Great 
Spirit had come, in the shape of a mouse and a stag, and blessed their 
boy. 

Little Thunder did not wait to become chief to begin his good 
work. He pleaded so hard with Big Thunder, that he never went on 
the war-path again; and an order was issued that nevermore should 
any father or mother destroy an unfortunate child. 

When Little Thunder finally became chief, he taught his people 
to treat kindly the weak and defenseless, and never to take the life of 
another, wantonly. He also commanded that white mice should not 
be molested; and from that time to this, they have been petted, and 
treated with great kindness. 

These Indians became the most peaceable and civilized tribe on 
the American continent; and Little Thunder lived to be one hundred 
and thirty-six years old. When he died an immense mound was built 
to his memory, and it yet stands, a monument to his goodness, near the 
banks of the “Father of Waters.” 


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T has been an awfully long time ! perhaps a hundred million 
years — yes, maybe, a hundred and fifty million years — 
Jp have passed away, since the Ether King and the Fire King 
and the Wind King and the Rain Queen ruled supreme; 
and there were only Ether people and Fire people and Wind people 
and Rain people upon the earth, in those days. 

The Ether King was the first to spring into life, having dominion 
over all the air. 

Then came the Fire King, falling with the earth, from whence 
nobody knows: and his reign in the beginning was so hot and so 
blasting, that nothing with life in it could exist upon the earth. 

But, later on, when the Wind King came, blowing icy breaths, 
and the Rain Queen, sending down cooling showers, the Fire King 
began to ’ se some of his power ; but he was still very great at the time 
of this story. 

Now, of course, those kings had to have love affairs; and it was 
but natural that the rough old Wind King should fall in love with the 
beautiful Rain Queen. But she knew so well his temper — how, now 
and again, he would howl and whistle and bluster, when mad — that 
she refused to marry him, lest some time, in an angry mood, he might 
blow her into a desert, from which she could never rise again. 

But the old Wind King found a wife; a very gentle and sweet 


13 



14 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


little woman, known as Zepher, being the youngest daughter of the 
Ether King; and while the Wind King really loved his wife, as much 
as a Wind King could love, he never quite got over being refused by 
the Rain Queen when he was young and greatly in love with her. 

To the Wind King and his wife, Zepher, a little boy was born, 
whom they called Breeze. They were both mighty fond of Breeze, 
and used to watch him in his playful antics, rustling the forest leaves, 
or gently pushing away the little vaporous clouds, that would settle 
over the dales and valleys upon summer mornings. While he was 
always an active little fellow, he was never boisterous; but gentle 
and persuasive, always, in his manners. 

It so happened that about the time the Wind King married 
Zepher, the Rain Queen became the wife of the Fire King, who had 
been so warm in his caresses, that he won her over to him. The Fire 
King and the Rain Queen also had a child; but it was a girl, and they 
decided to call her Dew Drop. 

It is said that Dew Drop was a most beautiful child; so delicate, 
and yet so sparkling and radiant was her countenance, at all times, 
that she was extremely attractive. 

The Fire King and the Rain Queen lived very happily together 
until their little girl came to them, but after that the Rain Queen 
noticed that the old king would often get morose and now and then 
show his wrath by burning up a few forests and prairies. 

She did not like his actions a bit; and upon insisting that he 
should tell her why he did not treat her as he had formerly done, 
and love her as much as he had said he did when they were first 
married, he flew into a furious rage and said he was unhappy because 
his child had not been a boy. 

Before the quarrel ended, he jumped out of his big house, 
and began to lick up the dry forest leaves, and roar and crackle, 
sending up great clouds of smoke, blighting with his red tongue the 
trees, flowers, and all the tender plants that the Rain Queen had spent 
so many years nourishing with her gentle showers. 

Upon hearing of the trouble between the Fire King and his wife, 
the old Wind King was mightily rejoiced, and he made a visit to the 
























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DEW DROP AND BREEZE 


15 


Fire King and promised to help him in his battle against the Rain 
Queen. 

So while the Fire King sent out sparks here, there, and everywhere, 
kindling blazes in the forests, far and near, the old Wind King urged 
him along with shrieking, howling blasts, that made the fire shoot high 
into the air, pouring forth smoke and cinders, which so enveloped the 
face of the earth that the Rain Queen became frightened, and feared 
the world might be burned up. 

Then it was she made up her mind to stop the work of destruction 
which the two old kings were carrying on. 

She at once called together all the clouds in the heavens and 
opened the flood-gates, sending down terrible torrents of water upon 
every spot of dry land. 

The battle lasted for many days; perhaps a whole month; but 
so determined and persistent was the Rain Queen, that she made the 
water to tear off the hill-tops and overflow the valleys and fields, 
finally completely vanquishing the old Fire King. 

When the old Fire King found that he was conquered, he felt 
so humiliated, and so much ashamed, at having been overcome by his 
wife, that he slunk away, and sank into the rocks and, for ages upon 
ages, the only way one could get even a spark of fire from the old 
king, was by knocking the rocks together making him fly out ready to 
blaze up and run wild again. 

Now, when the old Wind King saw that the Fire King had been 
subdued by the Rain Queen, and that he could not, single-handed, 
beat the Rain Queen, in a battle, he went off to his home, — which was 
a deep gorge in the mountains, — where he kept quiet for a long time. 

The Rain Queen, now being a widow, did not venture out much. 

So while their parents were at home, in a sad frame of mind over 
what had happened to them, Breeze, the son of the old Wind King, 
and Dew Drop, the daughter of the Rain Queen, were out doors all 
the time, running around and enjoying themselves immensely. 

When it was fair. Breeze would rise, early in the morning, even 
before the sun was up, going into the fields, or into the woods, where 
he would meet Dew Drop, playing on a spider’s web, or looking into 


16 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


some big blossom, or hanging from the forest leaves, all radiant, and 
sparkling like a big diamond. 

Breeze thought Dew Drop the most beautiful thing he had ever 
seen; and he used to rustle the leaves, swinging her to and fro, until 
the hot sun would come up, and make her hide away. 

It turned out that Breeze fell in love with Dew Drop; and when 
she discovered it, she would dress herself more beautifully each morn- 
ing, and hide in some shady spot, where Breeze would be sure to seek 
her, and spend a happy hour, even after the sun had risen. 

Sometimes she would bury herself in the great lilac bushes, and 
Breeze would go there and waft the sweet perfume of the blossoms in 
her face, while she sparkled and quivered with delight. 

Then again she would creep between the bursting petals of the 
rose; or maybe lie on a downy bed in the cup of the morning glory; 
or else nestle under the green leaves of the sweet clover ; but, no matter 
where. Breeze would find her, each morning, and sing to her, in a 
sweet cadence of love. 

This was one of his songs : 

“My love, she is a Dew Drop bright; 

I love my love so dear — 

When morning drowns the darksome night 
And glints upon the mere, 

I seek my love in hidden bow’r ; 

I seek, in field or wood; 

I find my love in tree or flow’r. 

My love, so pure, so good.” 

Breeze was a dutiful child, although he had a boisterous old 
father. One day he told the Wind King that he was in love with 
Dew Drop, and the old king flew into such a rage — blew so hard 
and so long — that Dew Drop could not come out for days and days; 
and Breeze had to go off and hide himself in a ravine, or behind a 
cliff, until his father’s anger subsided. 

The Wind King told Breeze he would never allow him to marry 
Dew Drop, because her mother, the Rain Queen, had refused him 












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DEW DROP AND BREEZE 


17 


when he was young and in love with her. He forbade him to see 
Dew Drop again, under penalty of severe punishment. 

Breeze moaned, plantively, as he wandered out upon the sea, 
rippling the water here and there, sighing ever, and always thinking of 
Dew Drop. 

The separation was more than he could bear; he became so mis- 
erable, and so lonely, that he could stand it no longer. Looking to the 
east, he saw Dawn ascending, fanning night away with her out- 
stretched wings, her flowing hair tinged with a roseate hue. 

Breeze leaped up, wafting over hill and dale, until he came to the 
sweet honeysuckle, all laden with perfume, waiting to be kissed by the 
humming bird. Here he breathed his sweetest notes, for he knew 
that, hidden there in the calyx of a blossom, the lovely Dew Drop lay, 
waiting for his lute-like music. 

The Wind King missed Breeze, and, when he returned, asked 
him if he had not been to see Dew Drop again. Although Breeze 
could plainly see that his father’s anger was rising, — his big jaws 
puffing out as though he meant to blow a hurricane — yet he told him 
the truth. 

The storm that followed was something terrible. Suddenly the 
heavens grew black; flashes of vivid lightning capered in zig-zag 
lines on the flying clouds; a roar, like the sea breaking on a mountain 
of rocks, rose high above the whistling wind, and then came the deluge 
of destruction. The air was sulphurous and stifling ; trees were twisted 
from their trunks; great rocks pulled from their sockets, wild beasts 
jerked from their lairs, and, all in one confused mass, sent rushing 
through the air, borne upon the heartless bosom of the wind, till 
thrown back upon the earth, and ground into powder. 

Breeze had seen the coming storm, and mounting the first little 
white, vaporous cloud that shot up, he urged it on with all his might, 
keeping always in front of the hurricane. 

Dew Drop, upon hearing the roar of the Wind King, hid in a 
cave. There she sat, sad and forlorn, until a beautiful fairy, called 
Mist, appeared, and taking her up sat her upon a lovely rainbow, far 
above the reach of the Wind King. She had not been there very 
long before Breeze discovered her, and gently fanned away her fears. 


18 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


Not until the old Wind King had blown almost all the breath out 
of his body, did the hurricane subside. 

Then Mother Nature went to work repairing the damage. She 
made more trees to grow, patched up the hill-tops with downy grass 
and slowly filled the gullies in the vales. 

After everything had become quiet, Breeze sought his father and 
found him still angry, but almost exhausted from so much blowing. 

The Wind King asked Breeze if he still persisted in his intention 
to marry Dew Drop; and when Breeze said “Yes,” the old Wind 
King jumped up from where he was resting, and changed poor little 
Breeze into a whirlwind. 

Off he went, waltzing around, and around, grabbing a handful of 
dust, and hurling it into the air, or else picking up great heaps of dry 
leaves, and scattering them here, there, and everywhere. 

One morning, as he went careening over a tulip bed, he peeped 
down into a cup, more gorgeous and beautiful than all the rest, and 
found, sitting there on a stamen, his dear little Dew Drop. He 
snapped off the tulip from its stalk, and went whirling away, high 
above the trees, carrying his precious Dew Drop far from the land 
of the Wind King and the Rain Queen. 

It is said that the little drops, which may now be seen on any 
bright summer morning, hanging from the forest leaves, or dancing 
from the spider’s web, or sparkling among the beautiful flowers, are 
tear drops, shed by the Rain Queen, in memory of her only child. 
Dew Drop. 

It is also thought that the tornadoes and the cyclones and hurri- 
canes, which often sweep over our country, destroying everything in 
their tracks, are but outbursts of the Wind King’s wrath, over the 
thought of his son. Breeze, who escaped from him, and married Dew 
Drop in spite of all his power. 

























H N the State of Kentucky, even at this day, there may be 
found bones of giants who once inhabited that part of the 

I country. 

In the same state, too, there is a wonderful excavation, 

known as the “MAMMOTH CAVE,” which tradition 

says was dug out by a race of giants, and used by them, for ages and 
ages, as a dwelling place. 

These giants were called Tah-rahs; which in their language 
meant “broad backs.” They were from ten to twelve feet high and 
often three or four feet broad across the shoulders. Their strength 
was enormous. A common size tree could be pulled up with ease and 
carried off by an ordinary Tah-rah. 

They were ravenous eaters, and a whole deer or antelope would 
scarcely satisfy the hunger of a single one. They were not particular, 
either, about the quality of their food. Every bird, fowl, beast or 
reptile the Tah-rahs could lay hands upon, was greedily devoured; 
and they ate even people of other tribes when they happened to cap- 
ture them. 

Just across the border of Kentucky, on a high peak of the Blue 
Ridge Mountains, another tribe of queer people had their home. On 
account of the small stature of these people they were called Peetoots. 
None of them were over four feet high, and ordinarily they weighed 
not more than fifty to sixty pounds. 


18 




20 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


The Tah-rahs had been enemies of the Peetoots for time out of 
mind, and these pigmies lived in mortal dread of the giants, who had 
killed and eaten many of their race. To escape the Tah-rahs, the 
Peetoots had burrowed under a big flat rock, on top of a high moun- 
tain, where they lived like so many ground squirrels. There they 
were safe; and only when they ventured forth to hunt deer and ante- 
lope and other game, were they in danger of being caught by their big 
enemies. 

One winter the snow had fallen deeper than usual, and so many 
were the drifts in the mountain gulches that the Tah-rahs found it 
difficult to travel. Scarcely any successful hunting could be done for 
months, and the giants found themselves without food, except dry 
leaves, which they dug from under the snow, and bark, which they 
stripped from the trees. 

The pangs of hunger became so sharp that they bethought them- 
selves of the Peetoots. The old king advised that they turn out and 
make another effort to dig the Peetoots from their rock home — they 
had often vainly tried this before. The suggestion was welcomed, and 
three hundred of the largest and hungriest Tah-rahs in the tribe pulled 
up enormous trees and marched off, vowing never to return without 
the Peetoots. Along they went over hill and dale, tramping down the 
deep snow and looking like a moving forest. It took them only a few 
days to reach the land of the Peetoots. 

The Peetoots were a provident people, and, like the bees and the 
squirrels, they toiled in proper seasons and laid up stores of food for 
winter. Thus it was that while the wicked and greedy Tah-rahs stood 
famishing at their doors, the Peetoots had enough bear and antelope 
meat, acorns and nuts, to last them a whole year. 

Even while the Tah-rahs were peeping in at the little holes that 
provided air to the Peetoots, and planning a way to overturn the great 
rock that lay between them and a good dinner, the Peetoots were as 
happy as lizards in the sun. 

The children were roasting chestnuts, or playing games, while the 
gray-headed old Peetoots sat around the fires and told tales of advent- 
ure that made them look big in each other’s eyes. Loud peals of 
laughter burst from frolicking children as they rolled over each other 


THE TAH-RAHS AND THE PEETOOTS 


21 


upon the earthen floor, and the stories of the old men had become 
exciting, when suddenly a strange visitor appeared, almost frightening 
them out of their senses. The few gray hairs upon the heads of the 
old Peetoots stood on end like the bristles on the back of a mad boar, 
while the little children scurried away and hid under their mother’s 
leathern aprons. 

A Black Eagle had entered at one of the holes in the rock and 
screamed wildly, as it fluttered into the presence of the Peetoots. 
Seeing they were frightened out of their wits, the eagle spoke : 

“Be quiet, Peetoots,’’ he said; “I have come to save, not to harm 
you. At your door on the south side stand three hundred of your 
enemies, the Tah-rahs; at an opening on the north end is a friend of 
the Peetoots that sent me to bid your chief come forth at once. Obey, 
and you may be saved; disobey, and, even before the sun rises again, 
the Tah-rahs will be grinding your bones between their ugly teeth.’* 

The little chief of the Peetoots trembled like a leaf, but an- 
swered : 

“Oh, strange, yet friendly bird, I will go; lead the way.’* 

The Black Eagle flew out, closely followed by the chief. 
Emerging from the cavern, the little chief was startled at beholding a 
huge White Buffalo standing close by, the Black Eagle perched upon 
his snowy back. 

“Fear not, brave chief of the Peetoots,’’ said the buffalo. “Be 
it known to you, O chief, I am the Genius of the Mountains. I lived 
before the first of the Peetoots sprang into life. On these wild moun- 
tains I am all powerful; stronger even than the whole nation of the 
Tah-rahs, but beyond their limits I am no more than the ordinary 
buffalo which furnishes a daily feast for the giants. It has been more 
than a thousand years since once I wandered away from my home and 
was saved from cruel death by a member of your tribe. A Tah-rah 
had come upon me suddenly, and as he raised aloft a big stone, in- 
tending to crush out my life, a brave Peetoot sent an arrow into his 
eye, killing him instantly. It was then I promised, O chief, to forever 
befriend your race when in danger from the Tah-rahs, and it is the 
remembrance of that promise which has brought me here to-night. 
The Peetoots are in great peril. Listen well, O, chief, and act 


22 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


quickly. Get your tribe together, command them to make ready for a 
long journey, and bring them forth speedily.” 

The frightened chief asked no questions, but rushing back under 
the rock, he began to beat frantically upon a dried buffalo hide, at 
the sound of which every male Peetoot grasped his bow and arrow and 
gathered around him. 

He gave directions to his men in a few words and they scam- 
pered off. Presently they reassembled with their wives and children, 
and, led by the chief, began to swarm out. There were six thousand 
four hundred and fifty-two Peetoots, counting men, women and 
children ; and it. took them almost the whole night to move from their 
cavern. As they issued forth a surprise awaited them. An immense 
herd of perfectly white antelopes stood upon the hard snow, watching 
their movements with quiet, gentle eyes. 

When the last Peetoot had crawled out, the White Buffalo com- 
manded the Black Eagle to drive up the antelopes. Flying over to 
their leader, the eagle perched upon its slender horns and the whole 
herd instantly trotted forward. The White Buffalo then made the 
Peetoots mount, and commanding the chief to follow the advice and 
directions of the Black Eagle, he sent the herd speeding away upon 
the hard snow, which crackled like torpedoes under their sharp hoofs. 

Going high on the rock, the White Buffalo peeped over at the 
Tah-rahs, who were still busy with their preparations. They had 
large trees made into long levers. One end of each lever was placed 
under the rock, and from the other swung a crowd of giants, thus 
gradually prying up the rock-covered top of the mountain; now and 
then, stopping to put props of wood or stone in the crack. On and on 
they worked until an opening had been made sufficient to admit their 
thick bodies, when they rushed in expecting to enjoy a feast of Peetoot 
flesh. 

Soon as the last Tah-rah had disappeared, the White Buffalo, 
which had been waiting patiently for the chance, galloped around and 
butted away the props! Down fell the great rock, shutting in every 
one of the three hundred Tah-rahs who had come to capture and 
destroy the harmless little Peetoots! 


THE TAH-RAHS AND THE PEETOOTS 23 


Finding themselves in utter darkness and without room to stand 
erect, the Tah-rahs crawled about on all fours and, in desperation, 
fought each other like so many wild tigers until not a man of them 
was left alive. 

Worried over their long absence, the old king sent messengers to 
find out why they had not returned. When he learned that they 
had perished miserably under the cold rocks of the mountain, he 
called the whole tribe together and made each man take an oath that 
he would hunt down the Peetoots, even to the four corners of the 
earth, and kill the last one of them. 

During the remainder of that winter, which is said to have been 
the longest and coldest in the history of the Tah-rahs, they were 
forced to subsist on dry leaves and bark. But when spring finally 
came, melting with her warm breath the deep snow, herds of deer, 
buffaloes and antelopes again browsed upon the green hill tops. By 
this time, though, the Tah-rahs had become so weak they were scarcely 
able to hunt. With great difficulty, however, meat was gradually 
provided, and they soon regained their strength and became as savage 
as ever. 

The Tah-rahs had a way of hunting that hardly ever failed to 
bring down the game. They would surround a herd of buffaloes or 
antelopes, and, advancing from every direction at the same time, would 
brain the poor beasts with their enormous clubs. Sometimes they 
would slay as many as a thousand buffaloes in a single day. 

No sooner had their hunger been thoroughly appeased than they 
began to talk revenge upon the Peetoots. They never knew by what 
means the little people had escaped, but they always believed the Pee- 
toots had themselves set the trap which caught their tribesmen under the 
great rock. The thought of this made them very mad and vicious. 
They would not believe that such a puny race could outdo the giants ; 
and, before summer had gone, the king held a council of war, at 
which it was decided to send two hundred of his bravest and strongest 
men in search of the Peetoots. 


PART II. 


The Peetoots* New Home. 

When the herd of white antelopes, guided by the Black Eagle, 
galloped away with the Peetoots seated upon their backs, they first 
took an easterly course, then, after traveling for a day and a night, 
they whirled about and made toward the north. On the afternoon 
of the second day, just as the sun was sinking behind the tall moun- 
tain peaks in the west, the sight of a beautiful valley, through which a 
winding river coursed swiftly towards the sea, burst upon their view, 
and, with one accord, they joyfully clapped their hands while their 
faces beamed with marks of delight at the prospect. 

Even the antelopes seemed to enjoy the scene that lay before 
them. They sniffed the pure air, so rich with perfume of sweet clover 
and elder blossoms, and quickened their pace. Arriving at the banks 
of the river, the Black Eagle perched upon a low limb of a tall syca- 
more and commanded the Peetoots to dismount. When that had been 
done the eagle said to the white antelopes: 

“Back to the Genius of the Mountains.” 

The whole herd capered across the valley and soon disappeared 
in the dense green-wood that skirted the foothills. The Black Eagle 
then informed the Peetoots that the beautiful valley — afterwards 
named Shennandoah — which spread out before them, would hence- 
forth be their home, and that there they could build their huts, and 
some day, perhaps, become a great race, even though they were so 
small. 

The little men worked with a will, and it was not long before 
they had comfortable quarters and were living in great happiness. The 
river supplied them with delicious fish, and the valley was always 
dotted with herds of buffaloes and antelopes, grazing on the sweet and 


24 


THE TAH-RAHS AND THE PEETOOTS 25 


succulent grasses. Thus we see how comfortable were the Peetoots 
when the second army of Tah-rahs, numbering two hundred men, 
started on the war-path in search of them. 

The giants roamed over the mountains, looking into every cave, 
and prying up big rocks, here and there, with the hope of finding the 
hiding place of the Peetoots. Nearly two months had been vainly 
spent in that way when one day they suddenly came upon a huge 
She-Bear in a marrow mountain pass. Grasping a tree, and jerking it 
out of the ground, one of the giants advanced upon the bear to kill 
her; but to his amazement, she sat upon her haunches, and said: 

“Spare me, spare me, mighty Tar-rah,and I will reward you by 
showing you the land of the Peetoots.” 

This speech caused the giant to put down his club, and, right 
there in the narrow pass, the Tah-rahs entered into a solemn agree- 
ment with the She-Bear. They promised never to molest her or any 
of her cubs ; and agreed to set a sign upon her, which was to be a slit in 
the left ear, that would always save her from harm at the hands of 
the Tah-rahs. The She-Bear agreed, on her part, to pilot the Tah- 
rahs into the new land of the Peetoots, failing in which they were to 
kill her. The Tah-rahs even went so far as to promise the old She- 
Bear as many Peetoots as she and her cubs could eat. That pleased 
her immensely. She had seven hungry cubs at home and if she could 
get a Peetoot apiece for them, what a feast they would have ! 

“Follow me,” said the bear, and she trotted off, the giants stalk- 
ing close behind her. 

After marching steadily for two whole days, they came in sight 
of the stream upon which the Peetoots were located, and the old She- 
Bear, pointing one of her fore paws down the river, said: 

“Mighty Tah-rahs! one more day and one more night, and we 
shall be among the Peetoots, whose houses are scattered along the 
banks of this river.” 

So delighted were the hungry Tah-rahs at this speech that they 
ran along smacking their mouths and singing: 


26 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


“Tee rah rah, tee rah rum, 

Peetoot’s meat is so sweet; 

Tee rah rah, tee rah rum, 

Peetoot’s meat we will eat!” 

So terribly frightened were the birds that nested in the trees on 
the river banks, and the beasts that usually browsed in the valleys, that 
they fled wildly before the approach of the giants. 

The Black Eagle knew from the commotion of the birds that 
passed, screaming over the Peetoot village, that something unusual 
had happened. Flying rapidly up the river the Tah-rahs were soon 
discovered, and the eagle returned with a feeling of fear it had never 
known before. Something must be done and done quickly, or the 
Peetoots would be lost — utterly wiped off the face of the earth by the 
surging army of mad giants. 

The eagle thought of a friend he had met long years before. 
Going to a bend in the river, where the waters eddied and foamed, 
he found the sweet River Fairy seated upon a poplar leaf, a forget- 
me-not blossom by her side, whirling around in the bubbling water. 
The Black Eagle briefly told her about the Tah-rahs and begged her 
to save the Peetoots. The fairy was kind and gracious to her old 
friend, and said : 

“I will try. Come again to-morrow at sunrise.” 

When the eagle had gone, the River Fairy rose from her floating- 
leaf and sat upon the limb of a large willow. Immediately the willow 
quivered and thousands of little branches dropped into the water. 
Scarcely a minute elapsed before the river was alive with beavers, 
otters and muskrats, which had answered to the sign of the willow 
branches. Fully fifty thousand poked their shiny noses out of the 
water, and struggled to get near the River Fairy, who spoke to them 
in this way: 

“Ho, my men of the river! There is work, work, work, work 
for you to-night! There is danger to some whom I have promised to 
protect, and before the sun again peeps over the hill tops, you must 
dig for me a tunnel, fifty feet wide and one hundred feet deep, run- 
ning from the bank to the foot of yonder mountain. You must not, O, 


















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THE TAH-RAHS AND THE PEETOOTS 


27 


my men of the river, disturb the crust of the earth, but leave a thin 
cover of verdant sod, so that none can know of your work.” 

“Creek, creek, creek,” said the beavers. 

“Whee, whee, whee,” exclaimed the otters. 

“Blub, blub, blub,” blurted the muskrats. 

This is about what they all meant to say: 

“We are ever ready to obey our mistress, the lovely River Fairy.” 

Off they went to their work; and, oh, such digging under the 
ground; such cutting away of roots, such scratching out of dirt, was 
never seen since the world began! Long before day the beavers, the 
otters and the muskrats, were again spluttering in the river, gathering 
about the fairy, telling her the task had been finished. 

“Go now,” said the River Fairy, “O, my men of the river, and 
feast on the dainty fish.” 

The next morning, just as the rising sun fell upon the willow in 
which the River Fairy had spent the night, the Black Eagle came 
and perched close to her, looking as though he expected good news. 

“All is finished,” said the fairy. “Remain here and see what 
happens to the Tah-rahs.” 

The Black Eagle did not have to wait long. The giants had 
risen early, and, now, as they tramped along the banks of the river, 
crushing with their ugly feet the stately iris and the shy forget-me-nots, 
their rude songs rang out and floated on the water, even to the ears of 
the Black Eagle and the River Fairy. 

On they came ; some carrying clubs that would have loaded down 
a horse; others with stones weighing hundreds of pounds. Soon the 
Peetoot village burst upon their sight and a shout went up from their 
big, hungry mouths that made the hearts of the little people stand still. 
A vision of their expected prey seemed to madden them; they sniffed 
the air like ravenous beasts and broke into a trot. 

t 

Wildly they rushed forward, whooping and surging in ecstacy of 
fiendish delight, at the prospect of grinding the flesh of the Peetoots 
between their yellow teeth, when suddenly the earth gave way under 
their heavy weight, and they sank, pell-mell, one upon another, deep 
into the tunnel which the beavers and the otters and the muskrats had 
dug; and every one of them perished. 


28 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


The Black Eagle had seen it all ; and after thanking the fairy and 
promising to come to her whenever needed, he flew away, carrying the 
good news to the terror-stricken Peetoots. 

The cunning old She-Bear had kept well in the rear, and when 
she saw the giants fall into the hidden ditch, she tucked her tail and 
ran away; but she had not escaped the notice of the ever-watchful 
Black Eagle, who suspected her of having told the Tah-rahs where the 
Peetoots had taken up their new home. 


PART III. 


Second Expedition of the Tah-rahs. 

Keeping a sharp watch over the movements of the sly old She- 
Bear, it was not long before the Black Eagle discovered her den. 
Waiting until she had gone out, he swooped down upon the cubs and 
began to carry them off, one at a time, to the land of the Peetoots. 
Just as the last one was being stolen, the old bear came up and slapped 
at the eagle with terrific force. The eagle dropped the cub, which 
caught the blow of its angry mother, and was killed instantly. 

So furious was the She-Bear at the loss of her cubs that she 
gnawed down small trees and tore the bark with her long nails. She 
knew the Black Eagle was in the service of the Peetoots, and she re- 
solved to be revenged. Going to the King of the T ah-rahs, she showed 
the slit in her left ear and told him of the misfortune that had befallen 
the two hundred; how they had gone to their death in a tunnel which 
the bear said had been dug by the Peetoots. 

The old Tah-rah King gnashed his teeth and snorted with rage. 
He was more determined than ever to wipe from the face of the earth 
the whole race of Peetoots. Calling his tribe together, he ordered 
every man able to go on the war-path to come forward at once, and 
follow him. Led by the king, with the old She-Bear as guide, the 
whole tribe started off, leaving behind only women and children and a 
few decrepit old men. 

For six days the great host marched towards the north, sometimes 
killing and eating as many as two thousand antelopes in a single day. 
They traveled through a sterile country where there was no water; 
and, on the sixth day, they were so nearly famished that loud threats 
were made to kill the bear and return to their own country. The bear 
entreated them to continue their journey, and assured them that an 


29 


30 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


abundance of water was but a little way off. Pushing forward with 
renewed hope they soon came upon that deep, clear stream, on the 
banks of which, many miles below, the Peetoots had settled ; and rush- 
ing into the river, like thirsty steers, they drank it dry. 

When the beavers and the otters and the muskrats saw only 
slimy pools, in which the fishes were dying, they complained to the 
River Fairy, and the Black Eagle was immediately sent for, and 
asked to go up the river and find out why the waters had ceased to 
come down. He was not gone long, and upon returning told the 
River Fairy that the Tah-rahs, with a stronger force than ever, were 
marching down the valley, and drinking dry the branches that fed 
the river. The River Fairy became very angry, and calling a large 
brook trout, hitched it to the cup of a lily in which she sat, saying: 

“Away to the spouting spring.’’ 

The strong trout darted off, shooting the little cataracts where, 
here and there, the sparkling waters poured over a fallen log, stop- 
ping, once in a while, in the cool, foaming eddies under moss- 
covered driftwood; then, frisking off, jumping high, now and again, 
to catch the unwary fly that flitted over the stream. After quite a 
long journey, the spring was reached. At the bottom the water 
bubbled up, stirring the white sand on which a small wise looking 
crawfish sat, intently watching a little hole. 

“O, cousin of the spring, the purest and best of all fairies, come, 
come to me!” called the River Fairy, in a sweet, musical voice. 

Out of the depths of the spring, out of the dancing sand by which 
the silent crawfish sat, came the radiant Spring Fairy and joined her 
cousin of the river. Seated on a spreading leaf of the lily, the River 
Fairy told her cousin that the wicked Tah-rahs had drunk her river 
dry; that her people, the beavers, the otters and the muskrats, were 
suffering for water, and that perhaps to-morrow those dreaded giants 
would even dry up the branches so bounteously fed by the Spring 
Fairy. 

“Help me, O, sweet cousin!” exclaimed the River Fairy. “Help 
me to utterly destroy the Tah-rahs, who are the cause of so much 
trouble and suffering in our lovely world.” 





THE TAH-RAHS AND THE PEETOOTS 31 


The Spring Fairy stood, quietly thinking for a moment, and 
then, addressing her cousin, said: 

“Be cheerful, my dear. I shall supply your people with cool, 
sweet water, and ere another sun shall set I shall have the giants in 
my power.” 

The Spring Fairy waved her wand, and, forthwith, the pods on 
the forget-me-not bushes that lined the banks, burst with a cracking 
noise, emptying their seeds in the swift-flowing brook. Instantly mil- 
lions of crawfish appeared ; some coming from the spring, others from 
the bed of the brook, and yet others from the marshy spots where 
grew the tall cat-tails and thick bulrushes. 

What a noise they made, crawling over each other, backward 
now, then forward, rubbing their big arms together, falling over 
rocks, logs and sticks, in hot haste to reach the Spring Fairy. When 
they had all assembled, the fairy stood on the leaf of the lily, blew a 
shrill whistle, and every crawfish was silent. 

“Go,” said she, “my men of the spring, and bore holes in the 
mountains; bore them quickly, and bore them deep.” 

Then began a scramble; and a noise arose like cracking egg 
shells, as the crawfish rubbed together in their haste to do their tasks. 
Such a boring as they did that night was never seen before! The 
whole mountain was honey-combed, and on the steep sides were 
millions of little piles of dirt that showed how faithfully the excava- 
tions had been made by the trusty people of the Spring Fairy. 

When morning dawned the crawfish had all disappeared in the 
spring, or in the brook, or under the bulrushes that lined the marshes 
at the mountain’s base, carrying with them the blessings of the Spring 
Fairy. 

Tramp, tramp, tramp! came the great army of Tah-rahs — the 
last that was ever mustered — maching along, crushing down the 
beautiful flowers that decked the valley, and frightening away the 
frisky thrush and gay red bird that had nested in the willows on the 
river bank. When they reached the sparkling brook, that wended 
its way from the home of the Spring Fairy to the river, suddenly a 
fog began to rise, which grew thicker and thicker, until the face of 
the beautiful sun was shut out and there was blackness of midnight. 


32 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


The great, burly giants could not see a foot before their eyes, and, 
while thus lost in utter darkness, the Spring Fairy made the waters 
to bubble up from the bowels of the earth, and pour out in myriads 
of streams from the little crawfish holes, completely overflowing the 
valley and washing the confused and turbulent mass of giants into the 
bed of the river, drowning every single one of them. 

When the work had been finished, and the Spring Fairy knew 
that not a single Tah-rah had been left alive, she plugged up the 
crawfish holes in the mountain side, and the brook retreated within 
its banks; the waters in the valleys dried up, and little sprigs of grass 
popped out of the ground; again the full river surged and eddied, 
buoying up the leafy craft of the River Fairy; and the perch gaped 
lazily in the shade of the overhanging bushes; and the beavers and 
the otters and the muskrats skipped upon the fallen trees, and soused 
their furry bodies in the rollicking current. 

The Peetoots made offerings to the fairies. To the River Fairy, 
they carried blossoms and leaves of sweet gum, casting them into the 
river; to the Spring Fairy, they took pure white blossoms of the dog- 
wood, scattering them over the spring. 


PART IV. 


The Peetoots Move Again. 

The wily old She-Bear had again escaped death by lagging 
behind, and she carried the news of the great disaster to the remaining 
few of the Tah-rah tribe that had been left in the cave. On hearing 
the bear’s story, the women and the decrepit old men held a council, 
and decided to let the Peetoots alone for evermore. Indeed, some of 
them said their troubles had been sent upon them as a punishment for 
the unholy practice of eating human flesh, and they urged that, 
thereafter, the lives of human beings should be held sacred in the 
eyes even of the Tah-rahs. 

When the old She-Bear heard that, she tucked her tail and 
slipped out of the cave, saying: 

“When the Tah-rahs stop eating people, it is time for bears to 
get out of their reach, even if they have got slits in their ears.’’ 

The remnant of the once powerful nation of giants remained in 
their cave one more winter, and then, gathering their effects together, 
they started towards the setting sun and disappeared forever. 

Some say they were caught up in a cyclone and blown away; 
yet others say that while crossing a broad stretch of prairie, a fire 
broke out and consumed the last one of them. 

So well did the Peetoots behave in the land where the Black 
Eagle had settled them, that the River Fairy and the Spring Fairy 
fell in love with them. Fearing their enemies might make another 
attempt to destroy them, the fairies decided, after consulting the Black 
Eagle, to remove the Peetoots beyond the possibility of danger. 

The beavers and the otters and the muskrats were called up by 
the River Fairy, and the crawfish assembled at the command of the 
Spring Fairy. They were instructed to build one thousand rafts. 


33 


34 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


eight feet wide and twenty feet long. The beavers cut down the 
trees; the otters trimmed off the limbs, and the muskrats and crawfish 
brought stiff red mud with which to daub the chinks. Before the night 
was half spent the rafts were ready. 

Standing out in the river, with beds of leaves upon them, and 
arbors of haw bushes above, the little fleet of rafts looked like a 
floating forest. 

It was early morning when the Peetoots embarked; then the 
fairies called together two million dragon flies, and with silken cords 
hitched them to the rafts. The dragon flies buzzed in the air and the 
little fleet went skimming over the water, down the winding river, and 
far out upon the bosom of the deep blue ocean. On the morning of 
the third day at sea, the Peetoots saw, in the misty distance, a strip 
of land. On going close, green hills and dales, specked with flowers 
and ripe, yellow fruit, came in view. The dragon flies steered straight 
for the land and presently moored the rafts to the mossy banks. 

The Black Eagle had perched in an orange tree, all laden with 
golden fruit; the Peetoots stood motionless, fascinated by the beauty 
of the scene that lay before them, while the fairies quickly cut the 
cords, liberating the dragon flies as they said: 

“To the Peetoots we give this land; here, free from all danger, 
your race will live forever.” 

On flew the dragon flies; back over the ocean from which they 
came, making the little leafy carts in which the fairies sat skim along 
the floating billows as lightly as feathers. 

Heart-rending sobs burst from the Peetoots as their sweet little 
friends hurried away. The men rubbed their eyes with the backs of 
their hands, the women held their aprons to their faces, and the little 
children cried aloud, when they saw the good fairies disappear for- 
ever over the boundless sea. One of the little Peetoots afterwards 
declared that the Black Eagle also shed tears. 

The Peetoots took possession of their beautiful country, which 
they afterwards found to be an island, and, guided by the counsel of 
the Black Eagle, became the most amiable and the happiest race of 
people that ever lived. 

It is the belief of some that the descendants of this race of little 


THE TAH-RAHS AND THE PEETOOTS 


35 


folks still inhabit the land presented by the fairies, so many thousands 
of years ago, and that the same good fairies even yet watch over 
them, always keeping the numberless ships that speckle the blue 
ocean with inky streams of smoke, or snowy sails, well out of reach. 

What a pleasure it would be to find this island, and hear from 
the dear little Peetoots the story of their long and happy existence! 

It may be that some shipwrecked crew will yet be blown upon the 
golden strands of the Peetoot land; but even then it is doubtful 
whether they would want to leave a country so beautiful and so 
abounding in everything that tends to make one good and happy. 


























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T has been so long since the Narizons inhabited the region 
known as Arizona, that no one can name the exact date. 
Indeed, there are but few people living who ever heard of the 
Narizons, since they left neither written parchments nor let- 
tered stones to tell their history. 

Narizon means “big nose/’ and it is said the name of Arizona is 
derived from this word. The Narizons belonged to the white race; 
were tall and slender, having small hands and feet, and beautiful 
features, with the single exception of the nose. It was the custom 
with Narizon mothers to pull and rub the noses of their babies to 
make them grow. Such a practice was thought proper, just as the 
Chinese think it right to put the feet of their children in hard shoes to 
keep them small. 

What they did and how they lived in the far-away past, before 
the warring Indians ran them out of the West, is known from tradi- 
tion only. The Narizons used to tell their children certain strange 
tales, and these tales were thus handed down from generation to gen- 
eration, so that, though ages upon ages have passed away, some queer 
stories about these peculiar people are still in existence. 

The Narizons also had a habit of wearing ornaments in their noses. 
The greatest among them used immense rings which were hammered 
out of pure gold or silver. The cartilage between the nostrils was 
pierced and the ornament inserted. 


37 


38 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


What a sight they presented, little and big Narizons, running 
or walking around, with skins girded about their waists, and great big 
rings hanging from their noses! Of course, they did not wear these 
ornaments when eating, but at all other times it was considered vulgar 
to be seen without a ring in one’s nose. Not all of them could afford 
gold or silver, for there were rich and poor then, just as we find them 
to-day. The poor Narizons wore long polished sticks, or bones, 
which were painted red at the ends, and sometimes hung with shining 
pebbles. There were probably real diamonds — diamonds being plen- 
tiful in those days, and not considered valuable. 

There are a few old persons still living in Western Mexico, who 
love to tell the following story of “Nileeta and Tim Tom,” as they 
sit around their fires, on cold winter nights. 

Nileeta was the daughter of a great chief, and came into the 
world with such a tremendous nose that she was considered the most 
beautiful Narizon child who had ever lived. When the king’s eldest 
son, Nilo, heard of Nileeta, he made a journey of three hundred miles 
to see her. On beholding her for the first time, Nilo, who was but 
twelve years old, knelt down, and, putting his nose in the sand, as 
was the custom in those days, declared he would entreat his father 
to choose Nileeta for his wife. 

“Because,” said he, “I am sure I can never marry any other since 
seeing Nileeta’s beautiful nose.” 

Nileeta did not think Nilo an ugly boy, but she said to her little 
friends : 

“I wish his nose was as big as my cousin Loto’s. Never mind, 
though, I will marry him when I grow up, if my father says so and 
the king is willing, and then I can pull his nose and make it grow 
prettier.” 

Nileeta’s father and mother were so proud of her being selected 
as the future wife of Prince Nilo, that they spent almost half their for- 
tune in the purchase of a solid gold ring, which was the biggest and 
prettiest ever seen in the land of the Narizons. 

As Nileeta grew up, her nose became larger and, of course, she 
looked more beautiful than ever, in the eyes of the Narizons. When 
she was yet quite young, she and her playmates used to ride out on tame 


NILEETA AND TIM TOM 


39 


antelopes, for miles and miles, in search of ferns and wild flowers, or 
else just for the fun of riding. 

Not a great way from where Nileeta lived, there was a mountain, 
the sides of which were solid stone, and as smooth and slippery as 
glass. It was fully ten miles high, and so steep that no one had ever 
been able to climb to the top. It was well known to the Narizons that, 
on the highest peak, there lived a hideous old goblin, who flew about 
the country on the backs of bald eagles, which she had trained to do 
her bidding. Occasionally she would steal little children, and carry 
them off to her towering retreat, from which they never returned. 
There was, however, a charm against the goblin’s power which was 
known to the Narizons, and seldom were children allowed to venture 
from home without one. It was simple, too, being nothing more than 
the tooth of a buffalo. Every family kept strings of buffalo teeth, and 
as soon as a child was large enough to go out, a charm was hung about 
its neck to keep off the “Mountain Goblin.’’ Nileeta had worn hers 
from infancy, but, alas, it did not save her. 

While she and several of her little friends were once out on a 
riding party, her frisky antelope took fright at a jack rabbit and 
plunged into thick brush and briars, where Nileeta’s charm was torn 
from her neck. It was some time before she got her frightened steed 
under control and had started back to join her playmates. Just as 
she came in sight of them, they threw up their hands, meanwhile 
screaming wildly. Looking over her shoulder, Nileeta caught sight 
of an immense eagle swooping down upon her. She shrieked, closed 
her eyes, and fell in a faint from the antelope’s back. Scarcely had 
she touched the ground when the Mountain Goblin, who was on the 
eagle’s back, grabbed the ring in her nose, and soared away toward 
the stone mountain, with Nileeta dangling in the air. 

Her playmates had looked on with horror, while the tears streamed 
from their eyes. They knew that no child taken away by the Moun- 
tain Goblin had ever returned, and now, little Nileeta, the most beau- 
tiful girl in the whole kingdom, was lost forever! Lashing their ante- 
lopes, they sped homeward like the wind, and between tears and 
choking sobs told what had happened. 


40 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


The Narizons were a very affectionate people, and were especial- 
ly noted for love of their children. So, when Nileeta’s parents heard 
the news they were heart-broken. 

It had been proclaimed by the king that Nileeta, when old 
enough to marry, should become the wife of his eldest son, Nilo ; and 
the Narizons had, therefore, expected some day to see her their 
queen. Hence, nothing was talked of for months but the fate of poor 
Nileeta. 

“What shall we do?” “What can be done,” were the questions 
heard on every side. 

Old men shook their heads and said: 

“Nothing can be done for her now.” 

The young men and boys suggested all sorts of plans for her 
rescue, but none proved successful. 

Nilo was wild with grief. He roamed over the country, begging 
everybody, young and old, men and women, to name some way for 
Nileeta’s recovery; but no one could help him. 

One day, while traveling through a dense forest, where he had 
gone to seek the advice of a wizard, he suddenly came upon a little 
dwarf, named Tim Tom, who, though quite grown, was not more 
than eighteen inches high and weighed but ten pounds. Tim Tom 
at once recognized Nilo and spoke to him. 

“Why,” said Nilo, after a moment’s hesitation, “this is Tim Tom! 
I haven’t seen you since I pulled you out of Tabo Creek!” 

It happened this way: Nilo and several of his boy friends were 
fishing on the banks of a stream, across which there was a large log 
used as a walk way. Suddenly he saw the water splash, and pres- 
ently a small object appeared, struggling for life, as the swift current 
carried it along rapidly. Throwing down his fishing rod, he pre- 
pared to jump in, but his companions held him, saying: 

“Oh, pray do not risk your life in that treacherous stream; it is 
only Tim Tom, the dwarf; let him drown?” 

But Nilo was big and brave-hearted. He pushed his friends 
aside, plunged into the creek, and soon swam out holding Tim Tom 
by the hair. The little fellow was almost dead, but upon recovering, 
thanked Nilo, saying: 


NILEETA AND TIM TOM 41 

“Some day, perhaps, even little Tim Tom may be able to do 
you a good turn.” 

So, when Nilo came upon Tim Tom in the woods, he told him 
of the loss of Nileeta, and how he had vainly striven, for months and 
months, to recover her. 

“Ah!” said Tim Tom, “I have been thinking of you. Prince 
Nilo. I heard long ago that the Mountain Goblin had stolen Nileeta, 
and that you were very much distressed. I have been thinking,” and 
he put his finger on his little head, “for, oh, so many days, and now I 
have my plans almost ready. Come and see.” 

He toddled along, followed by Nilo, until reaching a small pen 
built of dry sticks, he said: 

“Look!” 

Peeping through the cracks, Nilo saw about a thousand June- 
bugs, crawling around and trying their best to get out. 

“I want two hundred more,” said Tim Tom; “and then I am 
going to try and find Nileeta.” 

Nilo was surprised, and began to think poor Tim Tom was 
stark crazy. He did not tell him so, however; on the contrary, with- 
out asking a single question, he said to Tim Tom: 

“If you will wait here. I’ll go out in the fields and catch the 
other June-bugs you need and bring them back in less than an hour.” 

Tim Tom was delighted at the offer, and Nilo went off where 
the Indian corn was just tasseling, and soon returned with two hun- 
dred very large June-bugs. In those days June-bugs were much 
larger than they are now, and very much stronger. Tim Tom could 
catch only one at a time, and his work had been slow and tedious. 

Putting the June-bugs into the pen, which stood in a small 
opening between the forest trees, Tim Tom unwound a quantity of 
strong grass twine. Then, taking them out one by one, he tied the 
twine to their legs, winding the ends around a stump. After he had 
fastened them securely, he unrolled a little net, made of prairie grass, 
and attached it to the cords that held the June-bugs. Nilo looked on 
with astonishment, but uttered not a word. 

“Now,” said Tim Tom, “I must wait for a breeze. You see June- 
bugs always fly with the wind. When I get a blow towards the high 


42 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


mountain. I’m going to get into my net, cut them loose, and for the 
rest trust to luck. You know dwarfs are always lucky.” And he 
laughed quite gayly. 

Nilo consented to stay and see him off. They did not have to 
wait long; for on the next morning a brisk wind sprang up, blowing 
exactly in the direction of the stone mountain. Getting into the net 
basket, the little dwarf asked Nilo to cut the cords and stir up the 
June-bugs. It was done at once; and the big bugs flew away, carrying 
Tim Tom at a rapid rate, straight towards the mountain. Up and up 
they mounted until they drifted out of sight. Then Nilo sat down and 
wept at the thought of having allowed the poor little dwarf to under- 
take such a dangerous adventure. 

Tim Tom sped through the air, the June-bugs flying higher and 
yet higher, and when directly above the tallest peak, he was still 
hundreds of yards from the ground. But Tim Tom expected this, and 
had laid his plans accordingly. He began to cut the strings that 
bound the June-bugs. One, by one, he turned them loose, as slowly 
he sank towards the earth, until his weight bore down the remaining 
bugs, landing him lightly as a feather. 

He found himself in an open field, where there were many large 
rocks, and through which ran a stream as cleai as crystal. He had 
brought with him a sack of corn, and sitting down by the branch, 
cracked the grains upon a rock, and ate heartily. He saw no signs of 
a living being, nor had he any idea which way to go. While thus 
puzzled, a shrill scream broke upon his ears, and, looking around, he 
saw an enormous eagle pounce down upon an antelope. There was 
a sharp struggle between the bird and the frightened animal, but the 
eagle was the stronger and soon bore its prey aloft. Tim Tom 
watched the flight of the eagle with keen interest, and when it dropped 
down in a clump of trees, he said to himself : 

“That must be the old goblin’s house. I shall see.” 





PART II. 


Tim Tom Finds Nileeta. 

The sun had gone down, leaving only a faint glow on the western 
horizon, when Tim Tom reached the tree-covered knoll. The foliage 
was so dense that not a ray of starlight could pierce it. He groped 
about in the darkness, while overhead the owls hooted dismally. 
Presently he crawled up a crooked tree, and from his lofty perch saw a 
flickering light. Sliding down, he set out on a trot, and soon came to 
a small stone house, having but one tiny window through which 
the light streamed faintly. The opening was several feet higher than 
Tim Tom, but the rough rocks in the wall projected, and it was not 
long before his little head was peeping in. His eyeballs almost popped 
out at the sight before him. Down on the hard floor, only a few feet 
below, sat the horrible old Mountain Goblin, drinking from a big pail, 
while close by her side stood little Nileeta, trying to smother her sobs. 
Tim Tom lay noiselessly in the window. The old goblin continued 
to drink from her bucket of liquor, and presently, sang : 

“So they call her Nileeta! 

Oh, she wore such pretty charms, 

Ha, ha, ha! I shall eat her; 

Yes, eat her, body, legs and arms. 

“For your pretty Nileeta 

Nilo, you can weep and moan. 

Ha, ha, ha! I shall eat her. 

For she’s mine now, yes, mine alone.” 

On she went, singing and drinking, until she became beastly drunk 
and rolled over on the floor. 


43 


44 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


Poor little Nileeta crept away, on tip-toe, and dropped down in 
a corner on a pile of dry weeds. 

Tim Tom saw that the time had come for him to act. He climbed 
through the window, let himself down lightly, and then began to think 
how he could destroy the Mountain Goblin. He looked everywhere 
for a knife, but could find none. On the fire, a big pot bubbled and 
simmered, now and then foaming over the brim. Tim Tom looked 
at it, thoughtfully, for a moment, then, picking up a large horn cup 
that lay close by and mounting a low stool, he dipped out the boiling 
water and poured it into the old goblin’s wide-open mouth. She was 
too drunk to move, but her hideous screams might have been heard for 
miles away. Tim Tom continued to pour on the hot water until the 
pot was emptied and the goblin dead. 

Nileeta had seen it all. The first scream of the goblin had 
aroused her, and she stood shaking with fear, until Tim Tom told her 
who he was and why he had killed the goblin. Nileeta was so over- 
joyed at hearing from home that she forgot her troubles and kissed Tim 
Tom, over and over again, telling him she hoped he might some day 
have the biggest nose that ever was. Neither Tim Tom nor Nileeta 
slept a wink during the night. They were kept busy preparing for their 
escape. 

There was but a single possible way out of the terrible situation. 
They must manage to ride one of the bald eagles. Whether they could 
control the great bird, as the old goblin had done, was the question 
that bothered them. 

Nileeta told Tim Tom that, early every morning, the goblin had 
been in the habit of feeding the eagles at the door, and that each day 
they would come and make a great noise until they got their food. He 
listened attentively to every word, and kept his mind busy all night 
thinking how he should act. As soon as the first pink streaks of light 
appeared upon the eastern sky, there arose a great commotion — screams 
and the flopping of wings, such as Tim Tom had never heard before. 
He clutched Nileeta’s arm, and said : 

“Run quickly and get meat for the eagles; then, do just as I tell 
you. We must manage to mount the very largest one of them, and 
for the rest trust to my luck — you know dwarfs are always lucky.’’ 




NILEETA AND TIM TOM 


45 


Nileeta hurried to a big stone cupboard, took from it a piece of 
antelope flesh, and, followed by Tim Tom, opened the door. The 
eagles had never been fed by any one except the Mountain Goblin, and 
at first they were a little shy of Nileeta and Tim Tom. Pretty soon, 
however, they came forward and began to tear into shreds the piece of 
dried meat. Tim Tom went up to the biggest one of them, and strok- 
ing his great neck, motioned Nileeta to come to him. 

“Get on his back,” said Tim Tom, and Nileeta immediately 
mounted. 

“Now, give me your hand, and help me up.” 

Nileeta followed his instructions, and Tim Tom was soon a-strad- 
dle the eagle’s back, Nileeta sitting just behind him, between the great 
bird’s wings. 

“Now, Nileeta,” said Tim Tom, “hold fast to two wing feathers. 
I’ve got a good hold on his neck.” 

“I’m all right,” replied Nileeta. 

Tim Tom then kicked the big eagle with his little feet until he rose 
up into the air and sailed away with great speed. The goblin’s 
mountain was soon left far behind, and the strong bird kept rushing 
on, they knew not whither. They seemed miles and miles above the 
earth. They passed over great herds of buffaloes, which looked like so 
many ants, as they browsed upon the prairies, and tall forest trees 
seemed no larger than tiny bushes. 

“How are you going to stop the eagle, Tim Tom?” asked Ni- 
leeta. “We have gone a long way, and I am getting dizzy.” 

To tell the truth, Tim Tom had thought of the same thing, and 
was himself getting tired, but he was a brave little fellow, and the fear 
of scaring Nileeta had kept him quiet. 

“Have courage, Nileeta,” replied Tim Tom, after some hesitation; 
“we shall soon land. See! the buffaloes and trees are getting larger 
already. We are much nearer the earth.” 

But the eagle still plunged ahead, now downward for a few hun- 
dred yards, then upward again as though he meant to pierce the sky. 
Their journey had lasted fully six hours, and poor Nileeta and Tim 
Tom were both so tired they could scarcely speak, when suddenly the 


46 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


great bird drew in his wings and started toward the earth like a rock. 
It was with the greatest difficulty that Nileeta and Tim Tom kept their 
seats. The eagle had seen a young antelope, and swooped for it. 
Just as he clutched the poor creature in his talons, Nileeta and Tim 
Tom rolled off. 

Up flew the big bird, bearing aloft the bleating antelope, while 
Nileeta and Tim Tom lay stretched upon the ground, completely ex- 
hausted by their long and perilous ride. After a little rest, they began 
to look around. The country was new to them ; entirely different from 
that which they had known in the land of the Narizons. Nileeta could 
hold out no longer. The tears welled up in her eyes as she said : 

“Oh! Tim Tom, we are lost. What shall we do?’’ 

Tim Tom felt a little awkward himself. He did not know exactly 
what to do, but he said : 

“Come, Nileeta, don’t cry. We shall find a way out of this.” 

They were on the side of a high hill, at the bottom of which was 
a row of green bushes. Tim Tom had noticed this sign of a stream 
and, taking Nileeta by the hand, he said: 

“Nileeta, I think there is water below; let’s go and see.” 

They were not long in reaching the little hedge of alders, and, un- 
der the thick branches, a clear, cool brook rippled over a bed of spark- 
ling sand. They sat down, bathed their faces, took great draughts 
of water, and ate of Tim Tom’s cracked corn. Tim Tom suggested 
that they climb to a hill-top and take a look at the surrounding country. 

“If,” said he, “there are any people about, we shall surely see them 
from there.” 

But before they were quite ready to start, Nileeta pointed down the 
brook, and cried out : 

“Look, Tim Tom; yonder is smoke.” 

About a half-mile away a little cloud of blue smoke rose above 
the alders, and floated off into the air. They at once set out in that 
direction, and upon suddenly emerging from a great patch of thick un- 
derbrush, found themselves face to face with about a dozen of the most 
peculiar looking human beings they had ever seen. 

The strangers were tall, straight and reddish looking ; having paint 


NILEETA AND TIM TOM 


47 


smeared over their faces, and quantities of feathers stuck in their hair. 
They were Indians, but neither Nileeta nor Tim Tom had ever seen 
or heard of an Indian, and for a moment they were terribly frightened. 
The Indians had reached for their bows and arrows, as though they 
meant to fight. Tim Tom shook is head and spoke out, in a tongue 
they did not understand, but which seemed to satisfy them that the two 
little creatures were harmless. Then, a big chief said something to Tim 
Tom which, of course, he did not understand, and he tried to tell the 
Indian so by bowing and scraping. Presently the big fellow picked 
Tim Tom up in his hand, and, holding him out, showed him to his 
companions. They examined him closely and laughed among them- 
selves. Nileeta was treated much the same way. Her large nose was 
particularly examined, and she could see, from their gestures, they were 
discussing that feature of her face, which pleased Nileeta, for she had 
been taught to believe that all her beauty centered in her nose. 

The Indians, as Tim Tom and Nileeta afterwards found, were 
out on a hunt, and were then cooking their supper. They treated the 
little strangers very kindly ; gave them plentifully of buffalo steak, and 
made them a comfortable pallet of skins on which to spend the night. 
The next morning, Tim Tom and Nileeta were aroused and given in 
charge of an Indian boy, who motioned them to follow him. They 
understood that the boy wanted them to go away, but where, or for 
what purpose, they could not tell. 

Over long stretches of level country, and through tangled prairies, 
the Indian boy led the way, carrying Tim Tom on his arm, while Ni- 
leeta trotted along behind. Arriving at the Indian village, they were 
soon surrounded by men, women and little red children, who eyed them 
as though they were the greatest curiosities in the world. They were 
taken to the best hut in the village, and the chief of the nation — a great 
man in his day — sat them upon his knees and examined them closely. 
He was evidently highly pleased, for he presented to the Indian boy 
who brought them, a fine bow and arrow. The entire inhabitants of 
the village formed in line and marched by the chief’s hut, that each 
person might have a peep at the funny-looking strangers. When night 
came on they were fed upon the best the Indians had, and put to bed in 


48 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


a small wigwam adjoining that of the chief, which they were told would 
be their future home. 

In the course of a month, Tim Tom and Nileeta were able to un- 
derstand the Indian language pretty well; and they learned that the 
chief had decided to keep them as curiosities. Tim Tom did not relish 
the decision at all. He had been vainly trying to find out something 
about the land of the Narizons. Either the Indians had never heard 
of the Narizons, or else would give him no information. 

After the first month of their stay, Nileeta and Tim Tom were al- 
lowed to roam about the village at will, and everybody, even the little 
Indian boys, treated them with the utmost kindness. The half-grown 
boys would take them on their backs and gallop around for miles at a 
time, seemingly never tired of their burden. 

There was a wide, deep river close to the village in which the In- 
dian boys would often take them canoeing, paddling up and down the 
stream, catching fish, or gathering mulberries that grew so plentifully 
on the banks. At times Tim Tom and Nileeta were quite happy, and 
entered into the sports of the Indians with all their hearts. Yet, when- 
ever they would talk about their kins-people and friends in the land of 
the Narizons, Nileeta would think of her father and mother, and a 
great lump would rise up in her throat, and she would weep bitterly 
at her fate. 


PART III. 


Nileeta and Tim Tom Escape From the Indians. 

One night Tim Tom said to Nileeta: 

“I cannot stand this any longer. We must get away from here. 
Don’t you remember that there is a big river in the land of the Narizons, 
much like the one that runs by this village? Now, Nileeta, I have 
planned for our escape. You must do as I say and trust to my luck 
for the rest. You know dwarfs are always lucky.” 

It was quite midnight, and the Indians were all asleep, when Tim 
Tom took Nileeta’s hand, as they walked out of their hut, making 
straight for the river. Untying the best canoe he could find, Tim Tom 
told Nileeta to get in, and he followed. Nileeta took the paddle and, 
obeying Tim Tom, pushed out into the middle of the stream. The cur- 
rent was very swift and the little canoe sped along like an arrow. 
Silently they floated for hours, Nileeta at the stern, while Tim Tom lay 
upon his back, gazing at the bright stars that twinkled overhead. 

Red streaks shot up in the east like so many strips of scarlet rib- 
bon, and then they knew the day was breaking. Nileeta had become 
Very tired, and, just as the sun peeped over the tree-tops, she nodded 
and let the paddle fall from her hand ! It gave her a great fright, but 
Tim Tom said: 

“Don’t worry, Nileeta, we may not need a paddle.” 

The little canoe scurried along for an hour or more, when suddenly 
they observed, directly in front of them, a high mountain. Coming 
closer, they were horrified to see that the river, instead of passing 
around, rushed under the mountain, through a tunnel. Before Tim 
Tom and Nileeta had time to think, the canoe was sucked into the great 
funnel-like hole, and they found themselves in utter darkness. Sud- 
denly the boat struck something hard, and came to a standstill. In- 


49 


50 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


stantly a door opened from above and a stream of light, unlike anything 
they had ever seen, fell upon them. 

“The river has brought us a gift,” said a sweet voice. 

Looking up, they saw a beautiful fairy beaming upon them from 
a cavern in the rock. They knew she was a fairy, because in the days 
of the Narizons fairies were quite common, and Nileeta’s mother had 
often told her how they looked. 

“Come up,” said the fairy. And, reaching down, she took the 
hands of Nileeta and Tim Tom, and pulled them into the opening. 
The fairy spoke in the Narizon language. Indeed, she could speak in 
any language. She knew all races at sight and just how to talk to then* 

“How did your boat happen to strike the charmed stone in the 
tunnel?” asked the fairy. 

Neither Tim Tom nor Nileeta knew why; and they said it was 
mere luck. 

“Not so,” replied the fairy; “nothing happens by chance. There 
is always some good spirit to guard the pure and innocent, and I am 
sure you are both good, or you would never have been led to the palace 
of the Light Fairy.” 

She took Nileeta by the hand; sat Tim Tom upon her arm, and 
passed up a long winding stairway, cut out of solid granite, that seemed 
whiter than snow. There were blazes of light, bright as the sun, on all 
sides, and yet there was no fire. When Tim Tom spoke of the light 
and expressed wonder at it, the fairy told him it was made by the Light 
Fairy, and when men discovered the secret of the fairy light, fairies 
would leave the earth forever. (It was, in truth, nothing more than 
the electric spark which is seen everywhere at this day. ) 

After climbing the white stairway, for a distance of a hundred 
yards or more, they came to an immense square room, the ceiling of 
which was sparkling crystal, while the walls were studded with every 
sort of precious stones in the world. In the center of the room there 
was a great throne upon which stood a golden chair, inlaid with dia- 
monds, pearls, rubies and sapphires. When the fairy reached the outer 
door, she touched a pearly knob, and a little silver gong chimed a 
beautiful tune, while one whole side of the room opened and a great 







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NILEETA AND TIM TOM 


51 


throng of fairies came trooping in, dancing and singing to the sweet 
music of the gong. 

Soon after, came the Light Fairy, wearing the most beautiful dress 
that Nileeta and Tim Tom had ever seen: The train was very long, 
and was held up by thirteen tiny fairies who wore crowns of flowers 
upon their heads, and the prettiest little gold embroidered frocks that 
were ever made by fairy hands. The Light Fairy carried in her right 
hand an ivory wand, tipped with gold, and in her left hand a great 
bunch of snowy lilies. Her neck and arms were perfectly bare, but 
upon her bosom, where the dress was clasped, she wore a bunch of 
pure white roses. Her hair looked like a mass of silky-golden threads, 
as its long tresses waved and shimmered in the strong electric lights. 
Her bodice was blue, and her skirt of silk gauze was striped with red 
and caught up with thirteen star-shaped clasps of sapphires. Silver 
slippers covered her shapely feet, and on her head she wore a crown of 
pure gold having thirteen diamond stars set in its front. 

Stepping upon the throne, the Light Fairy seated herself, and 
waved her wand to Nileeta and Tim Tom. They advanced and 
bowed before her; then she asked Nileeta what she desired above all 
things else in the world. 

“To be at home again with my dear father and mother, and — 
and — to see Nilo,” stammered little Nileeta. 

Then, the Light Fairy turned to Tim Tom, and asked him the 
same question. Tim Tom answered that above all things in the world 
he would like to see Nileeta safe at home. 

Then spoke the Light Fairy: 

“I am one of many (E Pluribus Unum). It is my mission to 
defend the weak, succor the oppressed, and reward virtue. I know 
that you are good and virtuous, Nileeta; and you, Tim Tom, though 
not blessed with great stature, have a brave man’s heart and a wise 
man’s head. You have slain the most horrible old goblin in the world, 
and you and Nileeta shall have your wish. To-morrow morning when 
you awake, just as the radiant sun peeps up from behind your native 
hills, you will both be standing before the door of Nileeta s father s 


52 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


house. Furthermore, you shall live to a great old age, and be blessed 
with good fortune and happiness all your days.” 

Then turning to one of the fairies, she continued: 

“Take Tim Tom and Nileeta, dress them well, give them jewels 
rare, and fine gold rings, and put them to sleep in the silver wish room.” 

It was done as the Light Fairy ordered, and as soon as Nileeta 
and Tim Tom touched the downy bed they fell into a deep sleep. 
When they awoke, just as the Light Fairy had said, they were standing 
upon the rock steps of Nileeta’s home! Nileeta knocked gently upon 
the big stone door, which was soon swung open, and she fell into the 
arms of her father. 

Her mother heard the commotion and rushed out to see what had 
happened. On beholding Nileeta, she screamed for joy, as she hugged 
and kissed her a hundred times over. Tim Tom was not forgotten. 
Nileeta’s father embraced him, saying he should never leave them 
again; and her mother kissed him, declaring she would always look 
upon him as a son. 

Tim Tom suggested that his friend, Nilo, be sent for. Imme- 
diately a messenger was mounted on a fast antelope and the news 
carried to the palace. When Nilo heard that Tim Tom had returned 
with Nileeta, he could not believe such a thing possible. Yet he hur- 
ried to her father’s house, and was overjoyed on finding her well and 
happy in the arms of her mother. When Nilo discovered Tim Tom, 
standing quietly in a corner, he ran to him, took him in his arms and 
kissed him, saying : 

“Tim Tom is the greatest man in the kingdom of the Narizons, 
because he is the best and bravest.” 

Nileeta, her father and mother and Tim Tom were taken to the 
king’s palace immediately, and in due time Nilo married Nileeta. 

Tim Tom was made chief of the king’s household, and when Nilo 
became king, Tim Tom was chosen to place the crown upon his head. 
By this act he became sponsor for the king and heir to the throne. 
The reign of Nilo was the happiest and most prosperous in the history 
of the Narizons, and the people were fond of saying that Tim Tom, 
though the smallest in stature, was the greatest Narizon that ever lived. 


NILEETA AND TIM TOM 


53 


When Tim Tom died, a monument was erected to his memory. 
It was a tower of stone two hundred feet high and forty feet square at 
the base, resembling in appearance the great pyramid of Egypt. The 
ruins of this tower may yet be seen on the plains of Arizona, so some 
people say. 






DWEK5 



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Tuskm 


HOUSANDS upon thousands of years ago, in that part of 
the West where now lies the State of Utah, there once 
flourished a powerful nation known as the Tuskans. They 
were so named because of their peculiar mouths. From 
the upper jaws grew two long tusks which extended below 
the chin, and curved backward toward the neck. They were hand- 
some people, despite their peculiar mouths; but they were very igno- 
rant until the reign of King Siera, who taught them to read and write. 

The Tuskans had no houses. In winter they lived in caves dug 
from the mountain side, and in summer they roamed the broad Western 
prairies, hunting the wild antelope and buffalo which were then so 
plentiful in the West. 

Witches and all sorts of hobgoblins infested the earth in those days, 
but surely the ugliest and meanest goblin that ever lived was old Ore- 
gone, an enemy of the Tuskans. She had her hiding place in a cave, 
which was separated from the rest of the country by a ditch several 
hundred yards wide, and so deep that it was called, in Tuskan lan- 
guage, “Waukum Taukum,” which meant “Bottomless Ravine.” The 
exact place where the old hag lived is now covered by a body of water 
— the Great Salt Lake of Utah. 

Whenever Oregone left her hiding place, as she often did, she 
would mount an ugly creature with long black wings, and a head and 
body like a horned frog. Seated on her great frog-bird she would sail 


55 


56 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


about the Tuskan kingdom, often stealing little children, and some- 
times turning people into various animals. 

A certain old wizard, who was a friend to King Siera, told him 
that if Oregone’s caVe could be reached there would be found great 
quantities of books, which the old goblin had collected from every part 
of the world, and from these books he could gain much wisdom. 

Siera was an ambitious ruler, anxious to see his people become an 
educated race; and when he heard of Oregone’s books, he de- 
termined to make a powerful effort to get possession of them. 

A council of all the noblemen in the realm was held, and the 
king besought them to tell him by what means “Waukum Taukum” 
could be crossed. The matter was discussed for a long time, when it 
was decided that the chasm could be bridged by filling it with dirt. 

Every able-bodied man in the Tuskan kingdom was instantly 
pressed into service. Five hundred thousand Tuskans assembled, and 
for more than a year worked with all their might, pouring dirt into 
the Bottomless Ravine. Often, while this great army toiled, old Ore- 
gone would ride high above them, a mocking grin upon her face, as 
much as to say: 

“How silly to think you can reach my cave!’’ 

After a mountain, thousands of feet high and several miles across, 
had been cut away and thrown into the ditch, without leaving a speck 
of dirt in sight from above, Siera became discouraged and ordered that 
the work be stopped. He said to himself: 

“Kings may not always know the wisest men in their kingdom, 
and it may be that there are some wise ones outside the favored class 
of noblemen. I shall see if there is anybody in the land of the Tusk- 
ans, high or low, who can destroy the horrible old goblin, Oregone.” 

So it happened that Siera caused it to be known throughout his 
kingdom that his eldest daughter, Zuma, who was then just fourteen 
years old, would be given in marriage to anyone who might succeed 
in killing the goblin, and gain possession of her books. He even 
commanded that the reward be made known in the forest of Haba, a 
dreary place where all criminals and outlaws were banished for life. 

The Tuskans had a law which forbade marriage between ordi- 
nary people and members of the royal family. It was even a crime 


MONTANA, THE TUSKAN 


57 


for persons, except chiefs or their sons, to make love to a princess. 
Therefore, the king had to issue a proclamation when he offered Zuma 
as a reward for the destruction of Oregone and the capture of her 
books. 

There was a young Tuskan named Montana, whose parents were 
but ordinary people ; yet he was very handsome and remarkably wise 
for a youth of sixteen. He was slender and straight as an arrow. 
His long tusks were white as pearls, and his shiny black hair fell down 
in wavy locks around his square shoulders. 

One day while out hunting the antelope, he went into the forest 
near the king’s cave, and there met little Zuma, holding up her buck- 
skin apron, which she was filling with wild flowers. Zuma was either 
frightened by Montana’s sudden appearance or else pretended to be; 
for she let go her apron, scattering the flowers upon the ground. 
Montana picked them up and was about to leave her when she asked : 
“Is your father a chief?’’ 

“No,’’ replied he, “my people are but common Tuskans.’’ 

The little princess was made sad by Montana’s answer, for she 
had, at first sight, fallen in love with him ; but now she knew that under 
the laws of the Tuskans he could never marry her. 

Montana, for the first time in his life, regretted that he had not 
been born a nobleman. He thought Zuma was the most beautiful 
person in the world, as she stood before him crowned with three eagle 
feathers. 

She wore a bodice of antelope hide drawn tightly over her shoul- 
ders, meeting at the waist a buckskin robe, which formed the skirt and 
hung down to her knees. On her feet were beaded sandals, while her 
neck and arms were bare, except around the wrists she wore wide 
bands of beaten gold, clasped like bracelets. With large eyes, brown 
as a hazel-nut; with hair black as a crow’s wing, falling over her 
shoulders and down her back, reaching far below her waist, she did 
indeed look beautiful. Her nose was straight and well-shaped; her 
skin tanned by the sun to a light brown color, with here and there 
a freckle, and her mouth was as pretty as a mouth could be with two 
long pearly tusks growing out at the corners and curling under her 
chin. 


58 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


After this accidental meeting with the beautiful little princess, 
Montana often hunted the antelope in the same place, and he rarely 
failed to find Zuma gathering wild flowers, or big juicy berries that 
grew there in such profusion. Many were the happy hours spent by 
Montana in company with Zuma, but during them all he never dared 
reveal his love by a single word. 

There was a young nobleman, named Y ala, who was desperately 
in love with little Zuma, and he hoped some day to marry her. His 
love was not returned, though, for Zuma liked neither his looks nor his 
character. 

Y ala was short ; and his bushy hair and yellow tusks showed that 
he was careless and indifferent about his looks. He was cruel, too, 
to the members of his tribe, and seemed to take delight in punishing 
them for petty offenses. Zuma had tried for a long while to avoid 
Yala, and had told him, time and again, that she could never love 
him. After meeting Montana she simply despised Yala; and yet he 
continued to worry her with love-making. 

One day while Zuma and Montana were talking in their simple 
way, Yala came suddenly upon them and said to Montana in an 
angry tone: 

“What are you doing here talking with the princess?” 

“I don’t know that you have any right to ask such a question,” 
replied Montana. “Anyway, I shan’t answer it, since you are so un- 
civil.” 

“I’ll make you answer,” yelled Yala, as he advanced and brought 
down his big stone club. 

Montana warded off the blow with his left arm, and seizing Y ala 
by the wrist, threw him to the ground with such force that Zuma 
thought he had been killed. Leaving him prone upon the earth, look- 
ing as though he were dead, Montana and Zuma went away. 

Yala had not, however, been seriously hurt. When he arose he 
was in a terrible rage, and going immediately to King Siera told him 
that Montana had, against the laws of the Tuskans, been making love 
to Princess Zuma. Yala also related that he had found Montana and 
Zuma in the forest, and falsely claimed that Montana had tried to 
kill him. 












« 











\ 

















MONTANA, THE TUSKAN 


59 


King Siera was a proud man, and Yala’s story made him very 
angry. He sent for Zuma and questioned her closely. She answered 
him truthfully, declaring that Montana had never uttered to her a 
word of love in all his life. But Yala falsely swore, taking an oath, 
that he had overheard Montana avowing his love ; whereupon the king 
issued an order for his arrest. 

He was found at his father’s cave, and brought before Siera the 
next day. He denied the charge of Y ala, but confessed that he had 
often talked with Zuma, which so enraged the king that he sentenced 
him to be banished to the forest of Haba, under penalty of death if he 
should ever afterwards be seen on the outside. Montana went away 
with a heavy heart, knowing that, though innocent, he had been con- 
demned to a living death. 

When Zuma heard of his punishment she hid away and wept for 
hours. She resolved upon the spot never to marry anyone, but to 
keep sacred the deep love which she bore for Montana. 

And so it happened that, after Montana had been banished to 
the forest of Haba, he heard of the reward offered by the king for the 
capture of the old goblin, Oregone, and her books. 

“Ah!” exclaimed he when the news reached him, “I shall try to 
win the beautiful Zuma.” 

Then he remembered his situation: a convict, banished to a 
gloomy forest, not allowed to show his face on the outside without 
taking the risk of being killed instantly. What could he do? 

The bare thought of his helpless condition almost crazed him. 
Jumping up suddenly from where he had been lying and dreaming, 
he fled deep into the forest, running like a frightened deer, without 
once slackening his speed until darkness came on, and, broken down, 
he was compelled to halt. Throwing himself upon the ground, under 
the branches of a big spreading tree, he soon fell asleep. 

Montana did not know how long he had slept when he was 
aroused by a noise from the tree. Every branch quivered; and, 
although there was no wind, there came a sound of cracking boughs 
and rustling leaves, like that made by a rushing storm. Suddenly the 
commotion ceased and he heard a shrill voice humming: 


60 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


“Shake tree shake. 

Break bough break; 

Swing limb swing. 

While I sing, 

Riperty tip de ral dal day. 

“Fall leaves fall. 

Call birds call; 

Ring woods ring, 

While I sing, 

Riperty tip de ral dal day. 

“Fly bug fly. 

High up high. 

Wing on wing, 

While I sing, 

Riperty tip de ral dal day.” 

Montana looked all over the tree, but in vain, until a voice asked : 

“Are you blind?” 

Then he saw, sitting on a low limb, not a foot from his face, a 
little man no larger than his thumb. 

He was a perfect miniature Tuskan, but his tusks were no larger 
than a needle. His eyes were like two small shiny beads, and his hair 
was white and fine as thistledown. His clothes, which consisted of 
a little jacket and a short skirt, were made from the skin of a gray 
mouse. When the little fellow observed that he had been discovered 
he said: 

“Take me down.” 

Montana obeyed by placing him upon a high toad-stool. Then 
he asked the little man how he came to be so small and what he was 
anyway. 

“Oh! my name is MALAKALABALA, ” said he, “and I am 
five thousand years old. When I was sent into the forest of Haba I 
was larger than you are, but finding this tree, I ate of the leaves; and, 
while they lengthened my life, they made me shrivel up slowly. I 
suppose I shall live a thousand years more and then become so small 


MONTANA, THE TUSKAN 


61 


that nobody can see me. Oh, I have learned a great deal while living 
alone in this tree ! I have talked with the birds ; with the wild beasts 
of the forest ; with the bugs and with the little ants ; and even with old 
Oregone’s frog-bird, which she sometimes brings here and ties to my 
tree. I know almost everything, and I am so happy I would not go 
back to the land of the Tuskans even if I could.” Then, looking 
hard at Montana, he asked: 

‘‘Do you want to know anything?” 

“Yes, my dear little Malakalabala,” replied Montana; “there 
is one thing I want to know which maybe you can tell me since you 
seem to be so wise. If you can give me the information I desire, you 
will not only make me happy, but I shall become the greatest man in 
the kingdom of the Tuskans.” 

“Well, what is it?” asked Malakalabala. 

“It is this, Malakalabala: How can I cross the deep ditch that 
separates old Oregone’s cave from the land of the Tuskans?” 

“Oh! that can be easily done,” replied Malakalabala, slapping 
his little hands together ; “but after you get across I can’t say you will 
ever get back. Old Oregone is a great goblin!” 

“Never mind about that,” replied Montana; “just tell me how to 
reach her cave and I will take the risk of getting back.” 

“Oh! You are quite a brave fellow,” said Malakalabala, “and 
I shall help you. Listen now and do just as I direct. Go out on the 
plains and gather as much gold dust as you can carry” (gold was 
as plentiful then in the West, as the sand on the sea shores in these 
days) , “then, go to the deep ravine, and cast the gold dust in and see 
what will happen. Come, now, don’t ask any more questions; I am 
wasting time; put me back in my tree.” 

Montana placed Malakalabala on a limb, and immediately the 
tree shook and the little fellow began humming: 

“Buzz, buzz, zip zee. 

Sing busy bee 
Round flowers sweet 
With honeyed feet, 

Riperty tip te ral dal day. 


62 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


“Bor-ge-rum, rum. 

Like the base drum. 

The bull-frogs sing 
Round the cool spring, 

Riperty tip te ral dal day. ” 

Montana went away leaving Malakalabala still singing. 

On the next night he left the forest of Haba, went out on the 
plains, and gathered as much gold dust as he could carry, putting it 
into two bags made of weasel skins. Luckily he met no one who 
knew him; and he returned to the forest of Haba before day. On 
the night following, he marched forth to the ditch surrounding the old 
goblin’s cave, taking along his gold dust. He did not believe much 
in what Malakalabala had told him, but had made up his mind to 
try it anyhow. While standing there, on the very brink of Waukum 
Taukum, in the bright moonlight, he saw old Oregone mount her 
horrid looking animal and fly away. “Now,” thought Montana, “I 
will soon find out what Malakalabala knows about crossing this ditch.” 
Then, he opened a weasel skin bag, took out a handful of gold dust 
and cast it into the ravine. Handful after handful he threw in; and 
when he had almost emptied his sacks and was becoming discouraged, 
he noticed that the banks were moving. Dirt rose up and began to 
fill the great chasm. He scattered more gold dust, and faster rose the 
heaps until, to his amazement, a bridge formed across the ravine. He 
boldly set foot upon it now and then peeping over the sides to see 
whence came the earth that rushed upward. 

He did not stop long, however; he was eager to cross over and 
search the old goblin’s hiding place before she returned. Montana 
wanted the books that were hidden there because he knew with them 
he would gain his liberty and win the Princess Zuma. 

Soon reaching the mouth of the cavern he rushed in, going deeper 
and deeper downward, finally coming to a pile of books as large as a 
house ! 

“Ah!” said Montana, speaking to himself in low tones, “I have 
the books, but how can I carry them away?” 

Just as these words were uttered, one side of the cavern opened 




» 


MONTANA, THE TUSKAN 


63 


and twelve mountain fairies stepped forth, with outstretched arms, 
bowing low towards the ground. They had been imprisoned by old 
Oregone for five hundred years, and were doomed to stay shut up in 
the wall until some man should enter, a thing Oregone thought could 
never happen. 

Montana was greatly frightened. He had never before seen a 
fairy, and would have bounded out of the cave had they not dropped 
on their knees and said : 

“O, beautiful Tuskan, we are mountain fairies, and you have 
delivered us from a fate worse than death ; ask what you may and we 
will grant it.” 

‘‘Great and noble fairies,” replied Montana, still quaking with 
fear, ‘‘move for me these books to the palace of Siera, King of the 
Tuskans, and I shall be repaid a thousand times for my services.” 

Grasping the books they bore them off, waving Montana to follow. 
As he started to re-cross the bridge, he beheld, far below, thousands of 
Chinamen searching for the gold dust that had been cast into Waukum 
Taukum. 

The chasm was so deep that it extended through the earth to 
China ; and when Montana poured the gold dust into it, the Chinamen 
saw the gold and in digging for it filled up the ravine, thus making 
a bridge. 

Before getting half way over, old Oregone appeared, seated on 
her frog-bird, rapidly descending. At that moment a great Chinese 
fire-cracker tumbled down upon Montana (falling from China as the 
earth turned over), and the fairies cried out: 

‘‘O, beautiful Tuskan, fire the cracker with your flint and cast 
it at the goblin.” 

Although Montana had never seen anything of the kind before, 
he instantly did as directed, throwing the huge cannon cracker into 
the mouth of the cave, just as the old goblin landed. 

‘‘Boom!” went the Chinese fire-cracker, louder than thunder, 
blowing both old Oregone and her ugly bird into a thousand pieces ! 

Montana and his troop of fairies hurried off, and when they ar- 
rived at the palace of Siera, they were met by a great crowd of noble- 


men. 


64 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


The king was so overjoyed at the sight of the books, that he did 
not think of Montana. But there was one in the great crowd who 
recognized him and remembered that he was an outlaw from the land 
of Haba. 

No sooner had the wicked Yala laid eyes on Montana than he 
grasped his great stone club, and, creeping up from behind, raised it 
to kill him. Fortunately for Montana, Zuma had seen Yala and 
guessed his cruel intentions. Just as he swung his club to bring it 
down on Montana’s head, she grasped it and screamed so loudly 
that the people rushed upon Yala and disarmed him. 

The king immediately announced that Montana was pardoned 
and that he had won the reward offered for the death of old Oregone 
and the capture of the books. 

Siera made a regular speech. He said: “Montana has shown 
by daring deeds that he is the greatest Tuskan that ever lived, and after 
me he and his descendants shall rule over the Tuskans as long as our 
race shall exist.’’ 

Then calling Zuma to him, he took her by the hand and led her 
to Montana. Laying his right hand upon Montana’s head and his 
left on Zuma’s, he said: 

“The noblest of all the Tuskans has won you for his wife, for be 
it known to you that the fairies help none but the brave and noble- 
hearted.’’ Looking up towards the sky, he went on solemnly : “May 
great Zutu’’ (that was the Tuskan name for God) “bless you both and 
make you happy forever.” 

Siera then turned to Yala, who had all the while stood by with 
a sullen look upon his countenance, and said: 

“You were born a nobleman; your father was a great man among 
the Tuskans, but your nobility, Yala, is an empty, hollow name only. 
I condemn you to be banished to the forest of Haba for the remainder 
of your life.” 

Then, facing the great mass of people that had gathered around 
him, he exclaimed in a loud voice: “Henceforth, in the kingdom 
of the Tuskans, there shall be no noblemen by birth alone! Tuskan 
nobility must spring from the heart and the character of each individ- 
ual.” 


MONTANA, THE TUSKAN 


65 


The people were so pleased with the king’s speech that they 
made the heavens fairly ring with long, loud peals of applause. 

King Siera studied with great care the books which he had gotten 
from Oregone’s cave, and one of the first orders he issued was that 
the tusks should be pulled from the mouths of all children. 

It is recorded, but it is not a historical fact, that the Tuskans be- 
came a highly educated and beautiful people, afterwards known as 
the Aztecs. 



\ 



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$at to 

A TWt(an praiee^v 

A. SEQUEL TO"MONTAIJA, THE 
TUSKAN” 




FTER Montana had married the king’s daughter he be- 
came a prince, but princes in those days were not such 
grand people as they are now in some parts of the world. 
They were simple in their manners, and they dressed much 
like other folks, except they always wore three eagle feath- 
ers stuck under a band drawn tightly around their heads. 

To Prince Montana and his wife, Zuma, was born a beautiful 
girl baby. She was a lovely child, and instead of long, coarse, 
straight hair, common to all other Tuskan babies, a mass of little 
curls, tinged with a golden color, fell upon her dimpled neck and 
shoulders. The baby grew rapidly, and when five years old was 
known and loved throughout the kingdom, as Kava Nara, which are 
Tuskan words for ‘‘Golden Head.” 

Her father and mother used to sit at the mouth of their cave, 
when the warm south winds blew, and the sky was bright and un- 
clouded, watching little Kava Nara, for hours at a time, while she 
chased the gorgeous butterflies and cast pebbles of gold at the tame 
prairie chickens, then so abundant in the Western States. 

One day while they thus sat admiring little ‘‘Golden Head,” who 
had gone about a hundred yards away, in her gleeful chase of a big 
butterfly, a great shadow flitted across their faces. Looking up, they 
beheld an enormous bird, on whose back sat an awful looking copper- 


67 


68 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


colored witch, rapidly descending upon Kava Nara. Quicker than 
it takes to tell, the old witch grabbed Kava Nara and, lashing with 
a keen whip the bird upon whose back she rode, darted high up to- 
wards the sky. 

Poor Montana and his distressed wife ran out, rubbing their 
hands in agony and crying loudly: 

“O, witch, give back our Kava Nara, and we will pray great 
Zutu to receive your soul into Tamo.” 

The reason they spoke out in that way was because the Tuskans 
believed witches were spirits of bad people who had escaped from 
Zoto (which means purgatory), and that they could enter heaven if 
some devout soul would pray for them, every day, for six years. But 
the witch, taking no notice of their distressing cries, soared higher, 
yet higher, until nothing but a little speck, not larger than a bee, could 
be seen and, then, she suddenly disappeared entirely. 

Montana and his wife were heart-broken; they wept the whole 
night through. They could neither eat nor sleep for thinking of their 
dear little Kava Nara. 

When morning came, the bright sun rose, shedding light, first on 
the tree tops, then on the golden sands, just as it had done the day be- 
fore; but the light had gone out in the hearts of Montana and his wife, 
because their little pet was not there to bask in the bright sunshine and 
chase the big butterflies, that seemed to linger around the mouth of the 
cave as though they, too, missed the dear little ‘‘Golden Head.” 

Soon, the sad news of Kava Nara’s loss spread over the Tuskan 
country. A reward of a million antelopes and a thousand buffaloes, 
was offered to anyone who might discover the hiding place of the 
old copper-colored witch. 

Every boy in the kingdom, who knew Kava Nara, would have 
given his life for her return. Everybody talked about the strange 
bird that had been soaring over the country, on the day Kava Nara 
was carried off, but nobody remembered ever having seen such a 
peculiar looking creature before. 

Poor Montana sought all the prophets and wise men in the land, 
and asked them to reveal, if they could, the dwelling place of the yel- 
low witch ; but not one of them could unravel the mystery. 


KAVA NARA 


69 


The old king, Siera, Kava Nara’s grandfather, was almost as 
deeply distressed as Montana, for he loved his grandchild very dearly. 

Every night, for weeks and weeks, Montana and his wife would 
sit for hours in their cave, and, by the dim light of candles made 
from buffalo grease, talk about and mourn over the loss of their sweet 
and innocent little Kava Nara. One evening, while they thus sat and 
talked, Montana seemed more distressed than usual. He would, now 
and then, get up and walk back and forth, with bowed head, while 
tears welled up in his eyes, sometimes running down his face and 
dropping on the hard earthen floor. 

He had stopped in front of a great pile of books, a part of those 
which had been taken from the goblin, Oregone, and, hardly know- 
ing what he did, picked up book after book, and again, opening one, 
looking at it for a second, and, then, tossing it back in its place. Final- 
ly he noticed a small volume, so different in appearance from the 
rest, having gold binding on one side and silver on the other, that he 
picked it up and examined it very minutely. 

In opening this volume, he found some difficulty. While tugging 
at the lower cover and pressing upon the clasp, to his utter amaze- 
ment there came a ringing noise, the sound of which filled the whole 
cave with music. Before he could realize what had been done, the 
fairies that had helped him destroy the terrible old goblin, Oregone, 
appeared, and bowed before him saying: 

“O, beautiful Tuskan, we are here to serve you.” 

Montana, as he afterwards learned, had grasped a charmed book 
which would bring the fairies by a single ring of its bells. 

“Ah!” said he, ‘‘lovely, most gracious fairies; some strange witch, 
riding on a great bird, unknown to our kingdom, came here not long 
ago and carried away our little Kava Nara while she played about 
our door. Tell me, oh, tell me! where I may find her, and any re- 
ward you demand shall be yours.” 

‘‘O, Tuskan speak not so. ’Tis ours to do your bidding without 
price, since it was you who saved us from the dreadful Oregone. We 
know the witch; she is cunning, and oh! so mean; but unless she 
changes Kava Nara into a stork, or some other bird, we shall find 
her. A stork, O, Tuskan, is the bird upon which you saw the old 


70 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


witch riding, and, no doubt, that very stork at one time was a strong 
man. The witch you saw is known to the fairies as Wong Wong, 
and she lives deeper in the earth than the dreadful Oregone ever 
went ; but we can find her. 

“Through heat, through cold and rain, 

Through earth, and back again." 

So saying, the fairies suddenly vanished. 

Montana, his wife and the king were now hopeful. 

“Was it not the kind fairies that helped me to win you, O, Zuma, 
and shall they not find our Kava Nara?" said Montana. 

On the next day the fairies returned, and, true to their word, they 
had searched the earth over, finally finding Kava Nara in the cave 
of Wong Wong, right under the old home of Oregone, but away 
down on the other side of the earth. The witch was a Chinese witch, 
and the entrance to her cave was from China. 

When Montana and his wife heard the good news they clapped 
their hands and wept for joy ; but the fairies said : 

“O, Tuskan, do not yet rejoice, for there are great difficulties 
to be overcome before you can reach Kava Nara. We cannot bring 
her back to this side of the world. When we pass the center of the 
earth our power ceases, and the Chinese fairies have control there. 
You must go deep down in the cave of Oregone, which joins that of 
Wong Wong, and there wait. If, perchance, Kava Nara comes close 
to the opening we shall make into Wong Wong’s cave, then, O 
Tuskan, she may be saved." 

Poor Montana’s spirits dropped at the thought of the terrible 
journey to the center of the earth, where he might be forced to wait 
for months, if not for years, before being able to get even a glimpse 
of Kava Nara; but his weeping wife kissed him and said: 

“Go, Montana! may great Zutu bless you and bring you back 
with our beloved Kava Nara." 

Montana fell on his wife’s neck and wept, so overcome was he 
at the thought of parting from her. Then a fairy said: 

“Take with thee, O, Tuskan, the command book, and when on 











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KAVA NARA 


71 


yonder blue mountain” (pointing to a far-away peak), ‘‘touch the sil- 
ver side and say: ‘To the center of the earth.* When we are wanted, 
touch the golden side, and the bells will call us.*’ 

Taking up the command book, Montana went forth with a sad 
heart. Reaching the top of the mountain which the fairies had indi- 
cated, and, withdrawing the charmed book from under his robe of 
buffalo skin, he touched the silver side, and said: 

‘‘To the center of the earth.” 

Suddenly he heard a rustling noise, which came up like a whirl- 
wind, and, then, he smelt some fragrant perfume, so sweet and sooth- 
ing that it put him to sleep. When he awoke he was seated on a 
rock, in a deep cavern, where a great diamond, large as a goose egg, 
gave out light so brilliant that he could see quite plainly for yards 
away. 

Presently he touched the golden side of the book, and immediately 
a fairy appeared. 

‘‘Ah! most beautiful fairy, direct me how I may see my Kava 
Nara, and, maybe, recover her.” 

The fairy moved forward, waving him to follow, dropping dia- 
monds, here and there, to furnish light, until they came to what seemed 
to be a solid mass of granite. 

“O, Tuskan,” said the fairy, ‘‘this is the center of the earth; be- 
yond it we cannot go, but here we have fixed a door which can be 
opened only with this charmed key. Through this opening you must 
cautiously watch for the approach of Kava Nara, and, when near 
enough, if she ever comes so close, grasp her and close the door. 
Wong Wong can never follow you through this cave; but, be warned; 
do not, under any circumstances, pass into the domains of Wong 
Wong; for, if you do so, no fairy on earth can help you, nor can you 
ever return to this side of the earth. And, O, Tuskan, when opening 
this door cover your diamonds, so the light from them cannot be 
seen by Wong Wong.” 

Montana promised to obey implicitly the fairy’s directions, and 
then she disappeared. 

After covering the diamonds that gave him light, he took the 
magic key and opened the door. What a scene! As far as the eye 


72 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


could reach, the cavern of Wong Wong glinted with great diamonds. 
The strong light and the glitter from rubies and sapphires that covered 
the walls almost blinded him. Presently, however, he grew accus- 
tomed to the brilliancy and, shading his eyes with his hand, looked far 
down the blazing vault; but without discovering a living thing. Still he 
watched, on and on for hours, hoping he might have at least one peep 
at his dear little Kava Nara, even if he could not save her from the 
witch. Finally, tired out and dejected by the long waiting, he closed 
the door and lay down on his buffalo robe, still thinking of Kava 
Nara. 

Montana fell into a sweet sleep; and dreamed that little “Golden 
Head” had come back to him, and that again he sat in front of his 
cave in his own loved country, Zuma by his side, watching his playful 
child chase the great butterflies. The dream passed away and he 
awoke, feeling more unhappy than before. Again he took the magic 
key and opened the door. 

In the dim distance a little object was barely visible. It moved 
along slowly, growing larger as it came nearer, until after a while it 
stopped, drew up on one leg and closed its eyes. 

“That,” thought Montana, “must be a stork, about which the 
fairies told me; and probably it was once some happy person whom 
Wong Wong stole from earth. Oh!” exclaimed he in anguish, “can 
it be my poor little Kava Nara?” 

The great tears that trickled down his cheeks, as he thought of her, 
spattered on the hard rock like rain. Presently, dashing away the tears, 
he looked again. This time he observed two figures coming leisurely 
towards him. Straining his eyes to the utmost, he gazed intently on 
them, as they gradually approached. Pretty soon they were close 
enough for him to see that the tall figure was the witch, Wong Wong, 
and that she led a small person by the hand. His heart bounded ; he 
fairly shivered at the thought that the small object might be Kava 
Nara, and in a few minutes more he could gaze upon her sweet face 
and watch her golden hair as it rippled and danced over her dimpled 
neck! 

Now, they had come so near that he could distinctly see the bent 
form, high cheek bones, low forehead, sunken eyes and long chin of 
























- «* 



































































KAVA NARA 


73 


the witch. Just another step, and the light from a big diamond fell 
upon the small figure, and there stood his lost Kava Nara, holding 
the long, bony hand of old Wong Wong. 

At the sight of her Montana forgot for a moment the warning 
of the fairy and sprang up to rush through the door; luckily for him, 
however, the opening was so low that his head struck the top stone 
with such a force as to daze him for a moment. Then he remem- 
bered the fairy’s warning and was deeply thankful; for, had the 
accident not occurred, he would surely have dashed through the door 
and rushed into the cave of Wong Wong, when both he and Kava 
Nara would have been lost forever. The very thought of his nar- 
row escape sickened him with horror; but it was not long before he 
was eagerly scanning every movement of Wong Wong and Kava 
Nara. 

The old witch came still closer, and, when she reached the sleep- 
ing stork, she gave it a sharp lash with her whip which made the poor 
thing scream and run around in a circle. Presently she called the 
big bird to her and seated Kava Nara upon its back. Then, she 
moved on, driving the stork before her, in the direction of Montana’s 
hiding place. When nearly there, she turned to one side and made 
her way to a gorgeous seat, that looked like a throne. An enormous 
rug was spread in front and the cushions of the chair were covered 
with fine, richly colored silk. After seating herself and placing upon 
her head a crown that sparkled with diamonds and other precious 
stones, she popped her keen whip sharply. 

Stretching out its long wings, around and around the throne the 
great bird ran, little Kava Nara clinging tightly to its neck, and old 
Wong Wong grinning at the sport; showing a row of jagged teeth, 
so long, and so dark, that they made her look hideous. All the while 
Montana stood motionless, watching for a chance to snatch Kava 
Nara. It was not long before the stork became so tired it could 
scarcely run, but still the old witch said: 

“Gee hee on ! Gee hee on.” 

The poor thing kept trotting, though staggering under the weight 
of Kava Nara. While thus circling around, the worn-out bird stum- 
bled and actually fell against the opening, almost striking Montana. 


74 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


Just at that instant he grabbed Kava Nara, frightening her so much, 
by his sudden movement, that she screamed and held fast to the 
bird’s neck. While she struggled to release herself, not seeing that it 
was her father who held her, the old witch hopped down from her 
fine chair and hurried to the spot. She had reached out her long, 
skinny arm to pull back Kava Nara; but she was too late. Montana 
had thrown his little “Golden Head’’ aside and was closing the big 
stone door. The heavy rock swung on its hinges and slammed so 
quickly that it caught old Wong Wong’s neck and arm before she 
could draw back; and so tightly did it hold her that her deeply 
sunken, red eyes almost popped out of her head. 

Montana touched the command book with one hand, while hold- 
ing the door firmly against the witch with the other, and immediately 
the twelve fairies appeared. They drew from the pockets of their 
silver gowns, large balls of shining twine, and quicker than thought, 
fastened the great stone securely, wrapping, now and then, a cord of 
golden thread around the witch’s head. In a few moments, there 
lay the once powerful Wong Wong, bound to the merciless rock 
at the center of the earth, filling the cavern with her echoing groans. 

The fairies said to Montana: 

“Touch quickly the silver side of the command book and say: 
‘To my native cave.’ ” 

He did as directed, and, grasping Kava Nara in his arms, was 
borne away on a whirlwind and safely landed at home, where sat his 
wife, praying for their return. 

Oh, what a happy meeting! Kava Nara fell on her mother’s 
neck, while Zuma clasped her in her arms and kissed and hugged 
her, over and over again, as she wept for joy, shedding big tears, that 
hung like dewdrops on Kava Nara’s golden hair. 

The old witch, Wong Wong, was never seen or heard of again, 
and it is said that, at the mouth of her cave in China, a strange, 
gurgling noise, can yet be heard, by night and day, as though some 
one, away down in the bowels of the earth, were being choked to 
death. 

No doubt the noise is from old Wong Wong, who, still bound 
in the cave, can neither die nor get away. She has been there seven 
hundred thousand years or more. 










• . 

* 




•w 






EOPLE who have looked upon Niagara Falls and heard 
the thunderous roar of the water as it pours from the rocks, 
as well as those who have read about them in books and 
magazines, have often wondered how it came about that 
they are located in a comparatively flat country. It is not 
surprising to see mountain streams leap from great heights above, fall- 
ing hundreds of feet below, digging out enormous basins in solid rock; 
for in such places there is natural incline and elevation, brought about 
by the mountains. 

There is not so much of this, though, with Niagara Falls. An im- 
mense volume of water has simply fallen over a rock formation so long, 
and dug and dug into the earth so patiently, that a great whirlpool has 
been cut out nearly two hundred feet deep, which foams and boils, 
sending up clouds of mist as the water rushes madly on through a deep 
chasm-like channel until lost in Lake Ontario. 

Nearly all marvelous and wondrous things in nature have, at times 
in the history of the world, been subjects about which savage or unedu- 
cated peoples have woven strange stories accounting for their exist- 
ence. The Indians whom the white men found so numerous in this 
country when first discovered, had traditions, or what we might call old 
stories, that had been handed down from one age to another, telling 
how the great mountains and the rivers and the lakes and the oceans. 


75 


76 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


which they gazed upon, were first created. In nearly every case there 
was belief that these works of God were brought into existence by hu- 
man hands — by some more ancient and powerful race, or races, that 
had lived still farther back in the dark past. 

The Arrapahoes of the West believed that the Rocky Mountains 
had been created in a single night by a fire-witch, who, to save the tribe 
from a powerful enemy, descended into a hole in the earth, carrying a 
lighted torch, causing a volcano to spring up, heaving high above the 
plains the stacks of rock we now gaze upon and call the Rockies. 

The Cherokees of the Middle States told a story which they be- 
lieved, showing that ages before their tribe came into power, the Mam- 
moth Cave of Kentucky had been dug out by giants. 

The legend of Niagara Falls was found to be common among 
all the tribes composing the seven nations. Whether it is true, either 
in part or in whole, is something we cannot say at this late day, but the 
chances are that the superstitious nations made the story from time to 
time without very much foundation in fact. Nevertheless, it is so un- 
usual and so different from anything which could be manufactured in 
these days, that no one who reads it will fail to wonder how it came 
about that such a cause could be assigned for the existence of one of the 
great world-wonders. 

Well, now, without any further words of warning, we give the tale 
just as it was told to us by a descendant of the Onandago tribe : 

The red men, or the people we know as Indians, came from 
somewhere in the far West, first appearing in Mexico, and then gradu- 
ally extending north and east, overcoming all primitive peoples that 
they came in contact with. Nowhere, until reaching the country bor- 
dering on the Niagara River and the Great Lakes, did they find any 
very war-like race. 

Indeed, their march from Mexico to the section named, was easy 
and, for the most part, they had simply to contend with cave dwellers, 
who were timid and harmless creatures. But on reaching the Niagara 
country (as we shall call it hereafter), they encountered the most re- 
markable tribe of people that perhaps ever existed upon the face of the 
earth. 


NIAGARA FALLS 


77 


In appearance they were not greatly different from other folks of 
their day, except that they were grayish in color, and their eyes had the 
peculiarity of sticking far out from their heads, but could be withdrawn 
at will, much like a telescope which a man puts to his eye and works 
back and forth to get the focus. 

When the Indians first came upon these folks they declared war 
upon them, as they had done in their travels west and eastward with 
all they met, thinking to overcome them with scarcely any difficulty. 
But when the battle opened, and the red men with wild warwhoops 
rushed upon this new-found enemy, they were horrified to discover that 
while their adversaries were totally unarmed and made no attempt to 
shield themselves, not a one went down before the arrows and stone 
clubs and tomahawks of the Indians ; and though hit a hundred times, 
they stood unharmed, apparently enjoying the battle. Not until 
a hand to hand grapple ensued did it dawn upon the Indians that the 
foe were nothing short of stone men ! Men made of rock throughout, 
and upon whom the ordinary weapons of warfare made no sort of im- 
pression! Surely such a revelation was enough to scare the bravest 
heart, and it is no surprise that the red men began to break and run; 
but, alas, it was too late! The stone men had surrounded them almost 
to a man and gradually closing in, fell upon them and crushed them to 
death beneath their heavy feet and hammer-like fists. 

Other Indians, hearing of the defeat and almost complete destruc- 
tion of the tribe that had first attacked the stone men, became afflicted 
with a terrible fear, and called upon their witches and medicine men to 
explain the existence of this race, and to deliver them from the terrible 
fate which had befallen their brethren. 

One certain old witch, named Luna Lunos, who claimed that she 
had the power of becoming invisible whenever she pleased, promised 
the Indians that she would go into the land of the stone men and find 
out, if it could be done, how they might be destroyed. 

It is a trait of the Indians, and it was stronger in them in olden 
times than it is now, never to be happy as long as an enemy, or even a 
supposed enemy lives. He must be removed — must be killed. So it 
was that they became concerned, entirely to the neglect of everything 


78 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


else, about the stone men. They danced war dances ; they painted, and 
offered human sacrifices ; but not until Luna Lunos said she would spy 
upon the enemy and find out their secret s, did they believe in their souls 
that the time was near when they would slay these great giants, and 
take the fair country which they inhabited for their own hunting 
grounds. 

Luna Lunos disappeared and two moons had gone by before she 
was heard from again. When she did return she had startling stories 
to tell. She said that all of these stone men had their breath of life 
from, and owed their existence to one among them who stood in the 
way of being a sort of a king over the tribe. 

She had found this king, and, becoming invisible, had set by him 
for days and days at a time watching him and noting everything he did. 
She observed that the stone men had to appear before their king, every 
living soul of them, at least once a moon, when he would open a tiny 
hole in the back of the head and pour into it a liquid which he kept in 
great abundance in large gourd-like bags made of rawhides. Luna 
Lunos said that unless this was done, the stone men would become like 
the dead; would cease to walk, and simply topple over and remain 
motionless and helpless till again charged with this life fluid which was 
kept exclusively by the king. 

She did not find out, though, how he made this life-giving stuff. 
She simply knew that he had it, and it seemed always plentiful. 

The king himself lived in a kind of rock palace, made of huge 
stones piled one upon another, and arched overhead, the arch being 
open at both ends. In this stoneway there was a rude throne upon 
which the king sat, rarely having anyone near him except those that 
came now and again to be recharged with the life-giving fluid. To do 
this they passed in at one end of the arch, stopped for a second in front 
of the king, received the fluid, and passed out again at the other end. 

The strangest part of it all was that these stone men never seemed 
to eat. The woods were filled with all manner of game, and wild 
beasts, such as bears and wolves, etc., which prowled among them as 
fearlessly as though they did not exist. 

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NIAGARA FALLS 


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race of people should have lived at ail. Apparently there was nothing 
for them to do; nothing to make life worth the living, or worth the 
trouble of going once a month to the king and having it renewed. 
Still, it won’t do to inquire too closely into the reason for life in the 
frame of some animals, nor in the lower races of men even, as we 
now know them. 

According to the Indians, these stone people did live, however, and 
were very powerful in the way of fighting. 

Another remarkable thing about the stone men is that there were 
no women, and they all seemed to have come into life full grown. 
They looked more like dummies than real creatures, as they wandered 
about with their arms dangling from their shoulders and their eyes stick- 
ing out, or else withdrawn and closed like those of a turtle. 

And now comes the most startling part of the story. After Luna 
Lunos had watched the stone men for fully two moons she returned 
to her people to report all that she had seen and found out about them. 
Then a great feast was held, with a fire-dance, and human sacrifices 
were offered while Luna Lunos went off into a trance, and told the In- 
dians what they should do to destroy the stone men. 

She said that a vision had come to her from the Great Spirit, and 
had told her that the fairest young girl in the nation should be dressed 
in the most beautiful costume that could be woven by the squaws and 
taken into the presence of the Stone King. She claimed, also, that the 
Great Spirit had whispered to her that once the king looked upon a 
beautiful living woman his stone heart would begin to pulsate and he 
would gradually become transformed from stoniness into a man of flesh 
and blood, like all other men, and while under this charm he could be 
killed, and his medicine bags destroyed, thus at a single blow depriving 
the whole race of the life-giving fluid upon which they depended for ex- 
istence. 

The Indians, swayed by the influence of Luna Lunos’ trance- 
speech, sought out Wana Tanka, who was said to be the most beauti- 
ful Indian girl that had ever lived, and had been selected for the 
wife of a young buck that would become chief upon the death of his 
father, as the one to appear before the Stone King. The young buck 


80 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


who expected to marry Wana Tanka made strong complaint at allow- 
ing her to go off to the stone people, fearing, despite what Luna Lunos 
had said, she might never return to him; but his objections were cast 
aside by the tribe. 

So, under the guidance of the witch, Wana Tanka set out one 
bright morning, bound for the country of the Stone King. All day they 
tramped through forests and fields, and not until the sun was hanging 
low in the west did they come in sight of the arched palace ; and when 
they did, so frightened was Wana Tanka with the appearance of the 
house, and the king himself, who sat motionless except now and again 
poking out and withdrawing his cone-like eyes, that but for Luna Lu- 
nos, who grabbed her and dragged her along, she surely would have 
taken to her heels and left the place forever. And it would have been 
well for poor Wana Tanka had she done so. 

Now, though, she had no choice but to go forward, as Luna Lunos 
had become invisible, and was powerful enough to urge her along no 
matter how much she objected. 

When the Stone King beheld Wana Tanka she had not yet quite 
reached the entrance to the arch. Instantly he rose up, and his shaking 
frame showed plainly that something unusual was happening. His eye- 
balls shot out and in, like the working of a great suction pump, and his 
hands, which hung down below his waist, clanked against his stone 
body, sounding like flints when rubbed together quickly, sending out 
now and again great streaks of fire. 

As Wana Tanka drew nearer, his agitation became still greater, 
even his knees slapping together ; and when she had come within a few 
feet of him it was observable that the gray of his face was giving 
place to a roseate color, and that the stone was gradually becoming 
flesh, just as the witch had said it would do. And, lo and behold, 
when the witch, still invisible, pushed poor Wana Tanka quite against 
the person of the king, he looked upward and raising his arms grabbed 
her, embracing her with such force that he actually ground her body to 
pulp between the hard stony limbs which had not yet, like his head and 
face, turned into flesh! As he did this the old witch, who had pro- 
vided herself with a club, crushed the skull of the king, and then de- 





NIAGARA FALLS 


81 


stroyed every one of his medicine bags, thus leaving him dead upon the 
spot, with the bleeding body of Wana Tanka lying at his feet. 

Luna Lunos then hurried back to her people, where she related the 
story as it happened, saying the stone men must soon die, and the In- 
dians would again be able to rejoice at the fall of a powerful enemy. 

But there was one Indian — the one that had planned to take 
Wana Tanka as his squaw — who was not happy, and under the shades 
of night he slunk away. It was fully a month later — not until all the 
stone men had died or dropped to the earth for lack of the fluid which 
the king had supplied before his destruction by the witch — before the 
young buck reappeared, having with him the two stone arms of the old 
king that had crushed the life out of his poor Wana Tanka; and going 
up to Luna Lunos as though to show her his trophies, he pounced upon 
her, and before she could cry out, or even disappear by reason of her 
magic, he had beaten the life out of her with the cruel limbs that had 
caused the death of his sweetheart. 

Pretty soon the Indians advanced slowly into the country of the 
stone men, still filled with fright and uneasiness, however, lest the story 
of the witch might not prove true. But investigating further and fur- 
ther, they found that every one of the stone men lay harmless upon the 
ground, in the forest or field, or else around the palace of the king 
where they had gone for a supply of the life-fluid. 

They were astonished to find so many of them. Thousands upon 
thousands of bodies were scattered over the country, and indeed so 
hideous did they appear, and so afraid were the Indians lest they 
should, by some magic again come to life, that a council was held, and 
after innumerable sacrifices and suggestions by the wise men of the 
tribe, it was decided that the stone men be taken up and transported to 
the river bank, and thrown into the river, thus forever burying them 
from sight. 

This was done, but it took a long time ; in fact years, to accomplish 
the work. One after another they were dragged to the same spot and 
cast into the swiftly flowing Niagara. Gradually the pile rose higher 
and higher, almost bridging the river in some places. Then the Indians 
would go still further out upon the mass of stone bodies, casting in 


82 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


others, until the river was choked up, making a great dam over which 
the waters began to flow and fall below, digging away the earth year 
after year for thousands of years, finally making the wonderful falls 
and the terrible whirlpool we now gaze upon and call Niagara. 

Thus, according to Indian tradition, came about one of the seven 
wonders of the world — Niagara Falls. 



•/ • 





NCE upon a time, probably about the time Noah’s Ark 
landed upon Mount Ararat, a great flood of water, called 
a tidal wave, rose up out of the Pacific Ocean and swept 
the country now known as California. The water rose 
so high that it rushed over the tallest mountain peaks and 
filled up the valleys with great, roaring, river-like streams. When it 
finally subsided there was nothing left upon the face of the once beau- 
tiful land save a deep, muddy ooze. 

Before this flood of water there had lived in California a race of 
giants known as the Dobars. They were indeed a peculiar people. 
They were extremely thin, and tall as an ordinary telegraph pole, and 
upon their heads grew long, quill-like hair, which stood upon ends like 
bristles on a mad boar’s neck. Their hands, too, were different from 
those of people of our day. Instead of hands with fingers, they had 
long, sharp, thorn-like nails, sticking out in bunches about the wrists. 

They lived entirely upon meat, birds of the air and fishes from the 
sea being their chief food. When hunting birds they would go off 
into bush-patches or thickets, close their eyes and stand perfectly still, 
their long, bristling hair shooting up from their heads resembling twigs 
of the surrounding bushes. In this position they would remain for hours, 
sometimes for days, until an unwary bird happened to light upon their 
hair, then the bristles would suddenly snap together and catch him. 
Whenever they went down to the great ocean to fish, they would wade 


83 


84 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


in up to their waists, form in a circular line, bow down their 
heads (putting their long quilly hair close together), and reach down 
their thorny fingers, thus forming a kind of net (making it impossible 
for fishes that were caught in the circuit to escape), and then they 
would march together to the shore, often catching a thousand fish at a 
single haul. 

It is not said of the Dobars that they ever went to war with any 
other tribe. Indeed, it seems doubtful whether they knew of any other 
people. They had no houses. Their peculiar hands made it impos- 
sible for them to use tools of any sort. In stormy or cold weather they 
huddled under overhanging rocks of the mountain for protection. The 
only features about them that resembled human beings were their erect 
position when walking and their jabberings, which latter passed for 
speech, by which they communicated with one another. The noise they 
made was not unlike the chatterings of monkeys. 

As to written language, they had none. Indeed, one cannot im- 
agine how they could have used a pen or any other instrument (as 
many ancient peoples did), even if they had desired to leave a history 
of themselves upon parchment or stone tablets. Their hands, or, what 
might better be called the raveled-out bony ends of their arms, seemed 
to have been made for no other purposes than to serve them in supplying 
their bodily wants. 

There is traditional evidence that they had some sort of government. 
There was one particular family from which the ruler, who was called 
Wintaninta, was always chosen. The Wintaninta made the laws for 
his people and had the power of life and death over them. While the 
common folks clothed themselves with a kind of cloth, which they man- 
aged to weave from sea grasses, the Wintaninta’s dress was made from 
the skins of such animals as his body-guard (which consisted of twelve 
giants, the biggest and comeliest among them) could catch. Indeed, 
that was the main duty of the body-guard, and it was often extremely 
hard for them to even supply the demands of the Wintaninta, so dif- 
ficult was it, built as they were, to catch a bear, or stag, or buffalo. 
Now and then they were successful in killing buffaloes and other timid 
animals by running them over precipices, when the poor things would 
break their necks by the fall. The Dobars were very swift runners 


GIANT DOBARS 


85 


for short distances, but they had little power of endurance. Often after 
a few hundred yards’ chase they would fall down, and many times 
their long thorny hands and bristly hair would bury so deep in the 
ground that it was with difficulty they could be pulled out and set upon 
their feet again. 

Strange to say, these people had a kind of religion. They believed 
in a future state, and that after death they would be changed into trees 
and would grow and live always. Hence it was that whenever one of 
them died a deep hole was dug in the ground, and the body buried in an 
erect position, leaving, always, the bristly hair to show above the 
surface, thus marking the grave. 

In the course of time a certain Wintaninta, who was an unbeliever 
in the religious customs of his people, became chief of the Dobars. He 
declared that their religion was all myth, and that once the body was 
dead there could be no life again. For that reason, he commanded that 
the dead should be buried in a horizontal position, as people are buried 
in our days. He declared that it required too much time to burrow 
deep graves, as had formerly been the practice, and he vowed he would 
not tolerate such a thing. 

Many of the old people, who had long cherished the hope of a 
life of happiness after death, were made sad by the Wintaninta’s de- 
cree. There was one old woman in the tribe who became a martyr to 
her belief, and her cruel fate, it is said, brought on the destruction of the 
Dobars. 

She had lived, according to the annals of the people, two hundred 
and seventy-three years, although, as a rule, one hundred and fifty 
years was as long as the ordinary Dobar lived. 

This old woman’s name was Wamwam, but the whole tribe called 
her Packwa, which meant mother. She was deeply grieved by the 
proclamation of the Wintaninta and she prayed constantly that the 
unseen power in which she believed would change his wicked heart, 
and make him again return to the ancient religion of his people. 

Old Packwa had many children and grandchildren and great- 
grandchildren, and by her great patience, which enabled her to stand 
for days at a time, still and silent as a tree itself, she was able to catch 


86 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


plenty of birds to provide meat for her numerous kin, all of whom 
lived in the same ground-house. 

Notwithstanding the strict order of the Wintaninta, old Packwa, 
upon the death of a member of her family, saw that a grave was secretly 
provided in the old way, and that the ancient burial rights of her peo- 
ple were given the dead. 

Among her numerous grandchildren, there was one she loved bet- 
ter than all the rest. Her name was Lulala, which meant, in their 
language, the moon This name was given her because she was so 
pale, and yet so fearless of the dark, which she seemed to love. Often 
at night she would go forth alone and roam over the mountains, watch- 
ing the stars and listening to the night-birds singing, which seemed to 
make her very happy. 

Once while wandering about when there was no moon, and 
all the earth was covered with black darkness, she fell over 
a high precipice, striking on her head in the soft earth, her long bristly 
hair going deep into the ground, holding her so fast that, although the 
fall did not kill her, she had to lie there and perish. It was not for 
some days after that her body was found, and, when it was, it so 
happened that one of the Wintaninta’s body-guards discovered it. Un- 
der the Wintaninta’s order, Lulala was buried after the fashion he 
had commanded, namely, as people are now buried. 

When her poor old grandmother, Packwa, heard of the sad fate 
which had befallen her favorite grandchild, she was deeply bowed 
with grief, and went instantly to the Wintaninta and begged him to 
allow her to take up the body and bury it after the ancient order of the 
Dobars. The Wintaninta became furiously mad, and, instead of 
granting her request, had the poor old woman bound and cast into a 
deep hole, which had been made by a volcano. 

This so enraged many of the people that they became divided into 
two parties, one favoring the old custom of the tribe, and the other sid- 
ing with the Wintaninta. Then began a terrible and beast-like struggle 
between these formerly peaceable folk. They used no weapons other 
than their long fingers and bristly hair, but with these they tore out 
each other’s eyes and pierced one another’s bodies through and through. 

This cruel war continued for a long time, and thousands had been 



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GIANT DOBARS 


87 


killed on both sides, when suddenly it was stopped by the roar of the 
terrible tidal wave, which was mentioned in the beginning of this story. 
The water began to rise slowly, but day after day it crept further 
inland, the giants moving back meanwhile before the tide. It kept 
rising, however, and they were driven from hill to hill and plain to 
plain, until they had to stand upon the very summit of a mountain to 
avoid the terrible flood. 

There they stood, several thousand of them, stretched out in a 
long line upon a high mountain ridge. They, however, did not lack 
for something to eat, because the face of the earth was covered with 
water, which now began to run between their long legs, and the birds 
had scarcely anywhere else to light, save on the giants’ bristly hair, 
where, of course, they were snapped up and eaten. 

On came the water, day after day, rising higher and higher, till 
soon it reached to their waists. Yet they stood, hoping always for 
escape. Finally the flood abated without washing them away or surg* 
ing over their heads. 

When the mountain tops became free again of the water, and the 
valleys had been drained, the whole earth seemed soft and marshy. 
Then the giants began to move, going slowing down the mountain side. 
It was with the greatest difficulty they could drag one foot after the 
other, so deep was the mud. Reaching the valley, they meant to cross 
over to another mountain peak, where formerly had been their dwell- 
ing place. The farther they proceeded the more yielding became the soil 
and the deeper they sank into it, until finally they found themselves so 
firmly imbedded in the mud that they could not stir a step farther. 

They had not kept any order in marching, but straggled about, 
each for himself, over the whole valley. Thus, caught in a kind of 
quicksand, they slowly sank to their arm-pits; but, instead of dying 
quickly and decomposing as human bodies do, a kind of bark began to 
grow over their faces and around their long necks and arms. Then, 
too, the bristly hairs soon shot up with green twigs upon them, and the 
long, thorny hands began to put forth leaves. This process was con- 
tinued until the whole of them had been actually transformed into living 
trees! 

It is said that from this people sprang the great redwood trees, 


88 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


which are known to be the oldest and largest in the world, now standing 
in the Yosemite Valley and other sections of California. 

Oh, if these trees could only speak, what a story they could tell us 
of the long-gone and peculiar Dobars! But they cannot talk, and 
never will, and we must, in our imagination, picture the fearful fate of 
the race, and wonder if it was visited upon them because of the Win- 
taninta’s denial of their ancient religion. 


















I N the far away past, the territory of Alaska was the home of 
II the Ichos; a gentle and happy race of people. They were 

j 'I of medium size ; having flat noses, small eyes and large 

mouths; and were yellowish in color. Seals, polar bears 
and reindeer furnished the meat supply, as well as the cloth- 
ing of the Ichos. 

There was once upon a time, a great chief of the Ichos, named 
Ibo Ichohobad, who had two sons. The elder was called Ibo, after 
his father; and the younger was named Ido. 

Ibo was only one year older than Ido; but when he was seven 
and Ido six, he was almost twice as large as his younger brother. 
They were very fond of each other and were always together, whether 
at home in their little hut, or out on the steep ice-hills, where they 
would often go to play. 

The Ichos had no horses; but used dogs and reindeer that were 
strong enough to pull large sleds, on which they traveled over the ice 
and snow at a rapid pace. 

Ibo and Ido each had a reindeer and two dogs. Even before 
they were eight years old, they would mount their reindeers and, fol- 
lowing their father, go off to the great sea of ice, in which the Ichos 
caught seals. Then, again, they would hitch the dogs to their little 
sleds, and go dashing over the ice-plains to visit their neighbors. Ibo 
and Ido were very, very happy, in those days. 


89 


90 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


Although the Ichos had no books, nor pens, nor ink, nor pencils, 
yet they knew how to read and write, in a peculiar way. They cut 
letters upon great blocks of ice, with sharp flints, and from these 
ice-slates the young children would learn the alphabet. And when 
the little Ichos begged hard for a story, their fathers, or mothers, 
would bring from the library an ice-book, and read to them. 

This is the way Ibo and Ido signed their names on the ice: O 
V| (Ibo); | O P (Ido). 

The first fairy tale these little fellows ever heard, was read to 
them by their mother, when they were very young, from two large 
slabs of ice that were always kept in a far corner of their house, away 
from the fire. 

Here it is, in substance, just as Ibo and Ido heard it, from their 
mother’s lips, thousands of years ago: 

Once upon a time, there was a young chief of the Ichos named 
Ibec. Even at the age of twelve, he had been a great traveler. He 
would often hitch as many as a dozen reindeer to his sled, and speed 
away over the ice-hills. He could not be gone more than a year at a 
time, because there was a law of the Ichos which said that any chief 
who stayed away for a longer period should lose his right to rule 
over the tribe. 

Once, when the north wind was blowing fierce, biting gales, 
Ibec filled his big sled with dried meats, hitching ten favorite reindeer, 
and started on a journey towards the north. 

For several months he pushed ahead, stopping, now and then, 
to examine curious looking ice-cliffs, or to let the reindeer feed upon 
patches of succulent moss, which they found by pawing up the 
snow on the bleak mountain sides. 

After six months had almost passed, Ibec thought of his people, 
and the law which required him to return within a year. There was, 
however, just a little further on, a queer looking pile of ice that he 
had never noticed before in his travels, and a strong desire to examine 
it suddenly seized him. Urging his reindeer to full speed, he soon 
reached the spot. Climbing to the highest peak, he saw, still further 
ahead, a yet more gorgeous mountain; not quite so high as that on 


IBEC AND AURORA 91 

which he stood, but presenting the strangest and most beautiful sight 
he had ever beheld. 

A broad, winding avenue had been cut out of the steep ice-hills, 
gradually inclining from top to bottom, and, on either side, there were 
tall ice-pillars, upon the tops of which stood huge polar bears, with 
open mouths, showing their sharp, pearly teeth. The summit was 
covered with trees having crystal-like leaves, above which a huge 
ice castle towered towards the sky. The walls were built of solid 
blocks of ice, pierced, here and there, by windows fringed with snow- 
flakes. The roof was cone-shaped; and on each of the four corners 
of the walls, stood an immense reindeer, the right fore foot raised, 
and the neck outstretched, as though sniffing with delight the biting 
north wind. On the very peak of the steeple-like roof, an enormous 
moose reared in the air, supported upon its hind feet. 

Ibec was filled with wonder at the peculiar, yet grand scene that 
lay before him, and whipping up his reindeer, hurried forward. Im- 
agine his surprise when he found, on reaching the avenue, every one 
of the bears stiff frozen! 

Driving on, he was soon in front of the very doorway that led 
into the sparkling castle. Jumping out of his sled, and looking about 
for a moment, without seeing any sign of a living creature, he boldly 
entered, and strode down a long hallway, soon coming to an open 
door, through which he passed into a large room. 

The walls were plastered with seal skins; the floor covered with 
moss, and from the ceiling hung huge icicles, which glittered in the 
scanty sunlight that crept through the tiny windows. 

There were a great many rooms in the palace, and Ibec roamed 
from one to another for a long time, hoping to find an explanation 
of the dazzling wonder. Finally, tired out, he lay down upon the 
soft moss, and fell asleep. On opening his eyes, he beheld, standing 
near him, and looking down into his frightened face, — for the sight 
had startled him — a little girl, about ten years old, with ringlets of 
dark hair falling about her shoulders. Her large eyes were pale 
blue, and her skin was as fair as the drenched lily; yet there was a 
sad look upon her sweet face. 


92 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


Ibec thought he had been dreaming; but after rubbing his eyes 
with the back of his hand, and looking again and again, he knew the 
little figure before him was a living, breathing, beautiful girl. He 
started to rise, but a wave of the hand from the sad looking little 
stranger stopped him, as she asked in a low tone: 

“What brought you to this dreadful place? Don’t you know 
this is the palace of the Ice Witch?” 

“No,” replied Ibec, “I don’t know anything about it.” 

“Oh, you must get away from here,” said the little stranger. 
“Did you see the bears on the pillars, and the reindeer and the moose 
on the palace? They were once boys and girls, or men and women, 
whom the old Ice Witch caught, and turned into animals.” 

“She hasn’t turned you into any animal yet,” answered Ibec. 

“No, but it’s because she wants me here to wait on her. Don’t 
ask any questions; get up and leave this horrid place at once, or you 
may never reach your home again,” she pleaded. 

“Oh, I must ask one question, and I am going to stay until you 
answer me, even if the old Ice Witch does catch me. Who are you, 
where did you come from, and how did you get here?” asked Ibec, 
rising to his feet, and looking closely at his new acquaintance. 

“Now,” replied the little girl, in a vexed tone, “you have asked 
a lot more than one question ; but I will answer ; then you must hurry 
away. My name is Aurora. My father is King of the North Light, 
but his country is ever so far from here. Such a pretty country it is, the 
Land of the North Light. No snow nor ice there; but the King of 
the North Wind used to visit my father sometimes, when it would 
become chilly. Once, while they talked together, I came upon them, 
and the old King of the North Wind, patting my head, said to my 
father : 

“ ‘ Y ou have so many children, you must spare me this one, whom 
I shall take for the bride of my youngest son. Storm.’ 

“This speech made my father very angry, and, seizing the King 
of the North Wind by his long, flowing whiskers, he dragged him to 
a pit, cast him in, and put a stone over the top, leaving him there to 
die. The old Ice Witch, who is the wife of the King of the North 
Wind, heard about it; and going to my father’s country, found the 


IBEC AND AURORA 


93 


pit, rolled the stone away, and liberated the mean old king, who swore 
vengeance on my father’s race. One day, while frolicking with my 
brothers and sisters, the King of the North Wind rushed upon us, and 
placing me on a snow bank, high in the air, blew it along at a fearful 
rate, finally dropping me in this castle. The Ice Witch says she in- 
tends to keep me here, until I am of age, and then I must marry 
Storm. Oh, you don’t know what a disagreeable boy Storm is! 
He does nothing but fill the air with snow, and whistle around the 
corners of the palace ! The mean old king was not satisfied with steal- 
ing me; he afterwards brought two of my brothers and one little 
sister here, and, right before my eyes, they were turned into bears, 
and frozen stiff; then they were set upon tall ice pillars. The horrid 
old witch first changes people into animals, and the King of the North 
Wind freezes them with his cold, cruel breath.” 

“I’d like to see her turn me into a bear,” broke in Ibec. 

“Oh, you don’t know what you are saying,” replied Aurora. 

“Yes, I do; she’s too mean to live, and if I get a chance I’m go- 
ing to put a lump of ice in her mouth, and choke her,” said Ibec, 
boastingly. 

“But she would change you into a bear before you had time 
to touch her,” answered Aurora. 

“Listen, Aurora,” said Ibec, pleadingly; “I can’t take you to 
your home; but I can steal you from the Ice Witch, and carry you to 
my country. The Ichos are good people, and they will love you and 
try to make you happy.” 

“Oh, oh, oh!” screamed Aurora. 

“What’s the matter?” asked Ibec. 

“Oh, she’s coming, she’s coming!” replied Aurora, wringing her 
hands, as she shivered with fear. 

Ibec saw nothing, but heard the wind howling. Aurora noticed 
that he was puzzled, and said: 

“That is the King of the North Wind going out, and I hear the 
old Ice Witch coming down the long stairway. Run, run! or you 
will never get away from this horrible place.” 

Ibec grasped Aurora’s hand, saying: 

“I’ll go, but not without you.” 


94 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


They hurried through the hall, and out at the door, where Aurora 
was helped into the sled. Just as Ibec had taken his seat, and caught 
up the reins, he heard a shrill whistle, and, looking back, saw the old 
Ice Witch. 

She stood in the doorway; her sharp, hard features were white 
as polished marble; her deep-set eyes shown as glassy beads; long, 
white hair of threaded snowflakes hung around his shoulders; and 
her bony fingers tapered like icicles. Raising her right hand, and 
pointing toward the sled, she sang out, in sharp, cold notes : 

“By the power of magic rare. 

Go wander as the polar bear.** 

Instantly Ibec and Aurora became polar bears; but the King of 
the North Wind being absent, they were not frozen. 

When the reindeer saw the two bears seated in the sled, they took 
fright and dashed down the icy avenue, going fast as the wind. On 
they fled, over the crusted snow, down the frozen valleys, across the 
high mountains, until, overcome by fatigue and fright, they fell dead 
upon the ice. 

Climbing out of the sled, and each taking a bundle of dried meat, 
which had to be carried in their mouths, as they were then bears, Ibec 
and Aurora tramped along, in the direction of the Icho country. 
Now and then they would stop, put down their bundles, and talk; 
for the old witch had not taken away their power of speech. 

Aurora said to Ibec: 

“In our country there used to be fairies who could break the charm 
of witches.” 

At this Ibec pricked up his long bear-ears, and asked: 

“How did you find them?” 

“Oh, they hid in deep hollows of the woods, and sometimes 
children who were in trouble, would go there and cry till the fairies 
came out.” 

“I wonder if there are any snow fairies?” inquired Ibec. 

“Yes, I am sure there must be; for fairies live everywhere,” an- 
swered Aurora. 


IBEC AND AURORA 95 

“Come along, then,” said Ibec, picking up his bundle of meat; 
“let’s look for a snow fairy. I know if tears will do any good, we can 
cry enough.” 

They soon found a deep snow-drift, which lay banked against a 
pyramid of ice, looking soft and white enough for the home of the 
purest fairy in the world. 

They stood on the ice, and, hanging their heads over the snow 
pile, wept, pitifully, hot, burning tears, that trickled down from the 
points of their noses, boring little round holes in the snow bank. As 
they continued to cry, they chanted these verses: 

“O, come up, fairy, come up! 

From thy bed of snowy down. 

Sleeping in the depths profound, 

May the tear drops trickling o’er 
Make for thee a tiny door — 

O, come up, fairy, come up ! 

Sweetest fairy of the snow. 

“O, come up, fairy, come up! 

From thy winding sheet of snow. 

Where the night-worms never glow, 

May the tears of grief we pour 
Make for thee a tiny door — 

O, come up, fairy, come up! 

Sweetest fairy of the snow.” 

Suddenly little streaks of blue smoke poured out of the tear- 
driven holes and the snow bank opened, wider and yet wider, until 
a great chasm was made, deep down in the bottom of which was a 
small palace capped with a diamond spire. Presently Aurora spoke, 
for she had been taught how to talk to the fairies, saying, in a sad tone : 

“Sweet fairy, we are cursed by the Ice Witch, and come to pray 
your help. We entreat you, dear fairy, to restore us to our former 
shapes.” 

A large snowflake wafted out of the little palace and, rising up, 
lit upon the ear of Aurora. On the snowflake sat the fairy. 


96 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


“I know what you desire,” she said; ‘‘your tears told your story; 
and I am sorry, oh! so very sorry, that I cannot remove the witch’s 
charm. I can tell you, however, what must be done. These big 
bear ears must be cut off close to the head, when instantly you will 
become yourselves again.” 

Before another word could be said, the snowflake floated back 
into the fairy castle and the chasm in the snow closed, leaving Ibec 
and Aurora staring at each other, with wide open eyes. Presently 
Aurora asked: 

‘‘How can we find any one to cut off our ears? If we should 
come near one of your people, most likely we should be killed before 
we could say a word.” 

‘‘Yes, that is so,” replied Ibec; ‘‘but come, let’s go towards the 
south, and trust to luck.” 

Along they trudged, with the bundles between their jaws, two of 
the most miserable polar bears that ever lived. 


PART II. 


The North Wind Hunting Ibec and Aurora. 

The old Ice Witch was very angry when she saw the reindeer 
speed away with Ibec and Aurora, and she screamed so loudly for 
the King of the North Wind, that the ice cracked upon the palace 
walls, and fell down like hailstones. The old king was too far away 
to hear her, however, and it was quite five days before he returned- 

When he did get back and was told how Aurora had escaped, he 
became terribly puffy. Shaking his long white locks and flowing 
beard, he said: 

“The snow shall be cast into the sea; 

The mountains shall crumble to pieces; 

The valleys shall be filled with flying ice ; 

The earth shall quiver like a leaf. 

And no place shall be left for hiding.” 

Rushing along, he blew myriads of snowflakes from his open 
mouth, that whirled and danced, like white demons, in the icy air. 
Mountain tops were wrenched off, crushed into flinty particles and 
sent skimming over the crusted snow; while moaning valleys and 
screeching cliffs filled the world with a hideous noise. 

The roar of the coming storm was heard by Aurora and Ibec. 
Aurora knew full well what it meant; and dropping from her bear- 
mouth the bundle of meat she said to Ibec: 

“ ’Tis the King of the North Wind pursuing us! We can never 
escape him; come, let’s fall from a precipice and kill ourselves. ’Tis 
far better to die that way, than to let the horrible old creature freeze 
up our warm blood with his cold breath.” 

“No,” replied Ibec; “I’ll never give up until he gets me in his 


97 


98 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


clutches; and even then I’ll try to claw him with my big toe nails. We 
may yet escape, Aurora; who knows? Let’s look for a hiding place 
in the mountain-side.” 

Down they ran, leaping over ice heaps, that stood like rocks in 
their way, now falling and sliding on the slick surface, now running 
again until they reached the valley below. Coming to a cliff-like for- 
mation, Ibec said : 

“Here’s a good place, Aurora; let’s go under the ice pile. I 
don’t think the old king can find us there.” 

Under the great projecting mass they trotted, just soon enough to 
escape from tons of falling ice that filled the valley, and scurried along 
like an angry river. Ibec soon discovered that he had entered an 
ice cave, and at once concluded to explore it. He said to Aurora : 

“We can not go outside, and as we are forced to stay on the 
inside, let’s go as far away from the old King of the North Wind as 
we can possibly get.” 

Aurora thought that was a good idea. She didn’t care much 
what became of her, so long as she escaped the clutches of her old 
enemy. They went along, groping their way ; for it was so dark they 
could scarcely see, even though they had bear-eyes. After quite a 
long time they stopped to rest. Aurora had become terribly discour- 
aged; but Ibec said; 

“Let’s go smack to the end of this tunnel.” 

“What’s the use?” replied Aurora. “We can’t get out. Why 
not stay here and die?” 

“Oh, you are giving up again; that won’t do. I mean to see 
all of this cave, if I never get out.” 

“All right, then; I’ll follow, and I shan’t complain any more,” 
answered Aurora. 

They had wandered about, in the great ice cavern, for so long 
a time they supposed it had been a year, and were very nearly ex- 
hausted. Finally they heard a noise, as of flowing water. Examin- 
ing closely, Ibec saw that large blocks of ice floated by. 

“Come here, Aurora,” he cried out; “here’s our only chance.” 

“What!” asked Aurora, “have you found a peep-hole?” 

“No, but here are big blocks of ice floating in a river, and I am 





























































IBEC AND AURORA 


99 


used to riding on icebergs. Let’s get on the biggest one we can find, 
and take our chances.” 

Ibec kept a close watch, and presently discovered an ice block 
that suited him. Jumping on, he called to Aurora to follow him. 

They were carried along at a lively speed, by the swift current, 
now stopping in an ice jam; now suddenly shooting off faster than ever. 
In some places their furry backs would rub against the solid ice above 
them; and once they came near being dragged off. 

‘‘How long do you suppose we have been on this ice-boat, Au- 
rora?” asked Ibec, after a few days’ travel. 

“Fully forty days,” answered Aurora, “but it seems even longer.” 

In spite of their danger, Ibec could not help giving a bear-laugh. 

“You are a great time-keeper,” said he; “we have been on the 
river only four days. I know from the strips of meat we have left.” 

Of course they slept when they could, but their naps were gener- 
ally cut short by bumps against icicles which hung from the walls 
above the stream. Once, while Ibec slept, he had a dream. He was 
in his own native land; and with a great company of Ichos had gone 
out on the ice to hunt the seals. The sea was fairly alive with them; 
and he had killed dozens, upon dozens, with his keen blade. Seeing, 
in the distance, two polar bears, asleep upon the ice, he stealthily ap- 
proached them, and had raised his sword-like blade, when 

here the dream ended, and he saw, standing before him, his own 
brother, with raised knife, ready to plunge it into him. He was so 
horror-stricken that he could not speak. Down came the sharp blade, 
but a timely dodge saved him, and only one ear was cut off. Again his 
brother slashed at him, and, in dodging, as before, the other ear 
dropped, and there stood Ibec, in his own proper person, before his 
startled brother! 

His brother almost fell upon the ice .n fright! Presently they 
embraced and kissed each other. Then Ibec quickly chopped off 
Aurora’s ears, even before she awoke, and she instantly became 
her young and beautiful self again. 

“How long have I been away?” asked Ibec of his brother. 

“It will be one year to-morrow,” he replied. 

“We are on time, Aurora; come with me,” said Ibec. 


100 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


Taking Aurora by the hand, they ran along the ice, presently 
joining the seal hunters, who gathered around and welcomed Ibec to 
his native land. 

The news of Ibec’s return soon spread over the kingdom of the 
Ichos, and the next day, being the anniversary of his departure, on 
his famous trip to the North, a big feast was held in his honor. The 
people poured in from all directions, coming over the ice in sleds, 
drawn by dogs and reindeer ; and such an assemblage as gathered that 
day had never been seen before. 

Ibec related the incidents of his trip ; laying stress upon the difficul- 
ties he had encountered in escaping the old Ice Witch and the King 
of the North Wind, winding up by saying: 

“I had sooner died than left Aurora to the mercy of such horrible 
creatures.” 

Then Aurora told the Ichos about her people, who lived in the 
Land of the North Light; and they were much pleased at her descrip- 
tion of that beautiful country. 

Just before the feast was over, Ibec said: 

“There’s something else I want to tell my people. When Aurora 
and I were bears, she promised to marry me, if we ever became people 
again.” 

“Oh, yes,” broke in Aurora, “we fell in love with each other in 
the witch’s ice palace.” 

“Now,” continued Ibec, “when we are old enough to marry, are 
you, my noble tribesmen, willing to have Aurora as the wife of your 
chief?” 

“Yes, yes, YES!” cried all of them, slapping their hands. 

Aurora became a great favorite with the Ichos. She was so 
kind, so gentle, and so beautiful that she won their hearts, and was 
loved by everyone. 

Ibec and Aurora lived to a great old age, dying, finally, at ex- 
actly the same moment, just as the twilight melted into darkness, and 
immediately a great light sprang up in the North, which the Ichos, ever 
afterwards, called the “Spirits of Ibec and Aurora;” but it is now 
known as the Aurora Borealis. 







LWAYS, after listening to the story of Ibec and Aurora, 
as read to him by his mother from big blocks of ice, Ido 
would say: 

“When I’m old enough, I shall be a traveler, and I 
intend to look for the Land of the North Light.” 

His father and mother, as well as his big brother Ibo, would some- 
times laugh and jeer at him, until he would go off and have a cry, all 
to himself. 

But Ido would not give up his intention of traveling; and even be- 
fore he was twelve years old, so persistent had been his entreaties, that 
one day his father said to him, in a fit of anger : 

“Go, and stay away forever! I am tired of your whining, you 
worry my life out with your fairy-tale notions.” 

Ido knew that his father would repent of his hard words, if given 
a little time, so he hurriedly hitched up his reindeer and two dogs, and 
went flying over the ice upon his sled, without even saying good-bye 
to anyone. 

The Aurora Borealis appeared in the far North, shedding its soft, 
brilliant light over the ice fields. Taking that as his guide, Ido con- 
tinued to travel. 

At one time the light was brighter than usual : the mountain peaks 
sparkled like pyramids of diamonds, and Ido thought he saw, just 


101 


102 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


above the horizon, the outline of a giant, beckoning him, with out- 
stretched arms. This he considered a good omen; and, whipping up 
his team, he pushed forward, without once stopping until just as day 
began to break. 

While he was making his breakfast on dried seal meat, and dis- 
tributing some pieces to his dogs and feeding the reindeer, the sun came 
up over the eastern hills, looking at first like a red ball of fire, but, pres- 
ently, casting long shadows, which danced and capered upon the ice, 
like a troup of elves and hobgoblins. Ido felt quite proud of being a 
traveler, alone upon the ice field, bound for the Land of the North 

Light. 

But after ten days of constant travel, all the while going further 
and further toward the North, Ido was without a single morsel of meat, 
and he began to realize that unless more could be quickly found, he 
and his dogs would surely perish. As for the reindeer, there was moss 
in abundance. 

It was then, for the first time since leaving home, that Ido began 
to feel the pangs of hunger, and to grow a little bit discouraged. His 
poor dogs, too, plainly showed signs of great suffering, but he made 
them go ahead, as fast as they could trot, while he tried to think out 
some means of escape from starvation. 

“Suppose,” thought he, “I kill one of my dogs. I could live at 
least a week upon its flesh, and, then, if I’m not at the end of my jour- 
ney, I can kill the other.” 

But Ido had a tender heart; and when he remembered he had 
raised the dogs from little pups, and that they had for so many years 
been his playfellows, he exclaimed aloud : 

“No, no, no! I’ll die rather than kill them.” 

The thought of his reindeer came into his head. That would 
supply him and his dogs bounteously for twenty days; but the same 
objection to killing it flashed upon him. He had owned the reindeer 
since it was a wee baby, and loved it almost as much as he did his 
brother Ibo. Indeed, he used to say, when Ibo would poke fun at him, 
on account of his stunted size : 


IDO, THE ICHO 


103 


“My reindeer is a better brother than you are; he never laughs at 
my misfortune.” 

“No,” thought Ido; “my reindeer shall live, even though I die 
with hunger.” 

When he stopped again to let his reindeer eat, and his two dogs 
came to him and rubbed their warm noses against his hands, as was 
their custom, looking wistfully at him, while wagging their great bushy 
tails, big tears welled up in his eyes at the thought of their hunger. He 
even went to the great snow-drifts, near by, and wept over them, think- 
ing a fairy might come and help him ; but alas, no fairy came ! 

Presently, resuming his journey, Ido drove on bravely, going up the 
side of a steep ice hill. When he reached the top, he saw, in the far 
distance, great icebergs, rocking to and fro, and then he knew there 
was water near; and possibly seals and walrus. His dogs, too, had 
seen the sign of the sea and they ran forward eagerly. He was not 
long in reaching the promising looking spot, but his heart sank within 
him when not a sign of a seal or walrus could be seen ! The dogs ap- 
peared to share his disappointment, looking into his face, as much as 
to say : 

“Little master, what shall we do?” 

While Ido stood reflecting upon the distressing situation, an im- 
mense chunk of ice came crushing down from a cliff above, barely miss- 
ing him. Had it caught him and his team under its glassy sides, their 
troubles would have been ended, then and there, forever. 

Examining the cliff, lest another lump of ice might come down and 
catch him, he saw, not fifty yards away, an enormous polar bear, 
watching him intently from its lofty perch. 

Ido called his dogs and pointed to the huge beast. They pricked 
up their ears, swished their tails, and, giving a few sharp yelps, started 
off, dragging sled and reindeer after them. 

So eager were they that Ido had some difficulty in unhitching 
them; and when they were turned loose, away they ran, in pursuit of 
the bear, which had tucked its tail and started up the cliff-side. The 
dogs were soon upon the big old brute, however, nabbing its flanks so 


104 AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 

sharply that it had to stop and back up against a big rock of ice for 
protection. 

Then a furious fight began. The bear stood on its haunches, and 
whenever one of the dogs got within reach, would slap it, and make the 
fur fly with its long, sharp toe nails. 

While the bear was thus defending itself against the dogs, Ido went 
far up the cliff above, where stood some enormous lumps of ice, needing 
but a slight effort to be sent thundering down. He selected one in a 
favorable spot, and, screaming to his dogs, pushed it from its socket. 
With a smash and a crash the great ice block thundered down, hurling 
the bear to the bottom of the cliff ! 

The dogs had taken warning and scampered away. 

Ido watched, for a few moments, and then cautiously picked his 
way down the cliff. The dogs had gone ahead, and when he reached 
them they were scratching in the crushed snow, now and then pulling 
out a mouthful of bear’s fur. Ido helped with all his might to scrape 
the ice away, and soon found old bruin, mashed almost into a jelly. 

Then followed a royal feast. The skin was stripped away, and 
raw bear meat was devoured by Ido and the hungry dogs, as though it 
had been the greatest delicacy in the world. 

After Ido had satisfied his hunger, and allowed his faithful dogs to 
eat as much as they could swallow, he cut up the remainder of the bear 
meat and put it in his sled. 

When night came on again, Ido continued his journey, feeling con- 
tented, if not perfectly happy, under the influence of a thoroughly 
satisfied appetite. 

The full moon had risen, and apparently stopped in her march 
across the sky, as though envious of the Aurora Borealis, which was 
giving out a great flood of light. 

Ido was now traveling in a narrow valley, where the surface of 
the ice was like polished glass. On either side rose gigantic ice heaps, 
towering far above him. Just a little way ahead, objects that looked 
like huge icicles, moved sprightly about in the valley, while others came 
trooping down from the ice-hills, dancing and jingling together, making 
the strangest, though the sweetest music, Ido had ever heard. 


IDO, THE ICHO 


105 


He was soon in their midst, his heavy sled crushing and grinding 
them under its runners, when suddenly he was startled and frightened 
by a voice, saying: 

“Stop, you heartless thing! Don’t you see you are killing my 
people? If you move another foot. I’ll turn you into a ball of ice.’’ 

Ido halted instantly. The blood almost froze in his veins, so 
scared was he at the sound of the strange voice. He looked trem- 
blingly, all about him, for a second or two, before seeing the tiny little 
creature who had spoken. It was the Ice Fairy. 

There she stood, just ahead of him, beautifully dressed in a gown 
of frost, and carrying in her hand a string of small crystal bells. 

Ido had heard so much about fairies from his mother, that he 
knew quite well how to answer. So he spoke up, saying: 

“O, dear fairy, please don’t get mad. I didn’t know it was 
wrong to drive over the icicles. If I’ve done any harm, I am awfully 
sorry.” 

“Well,” replied the fairy, “I am glad to hear you talk that way. 
I thought you might be one of those bad boys who take delight in de- 
stroying everything beautiful and pleasure-giving that they can find. 
Get out and scrape up the pieces of my men whom you have broken up 
with your sled.” 

Ido jumped out of the sled, and while collecting the broken pieces 
he was amazed to find that the objects, which he had supposed were 
icicles, were, indeed, real little men and women, who would fall to 
pieces if roughly handled. 

After Ido had made heaps of the shattered little folks, the fairy 
put the bits together, and they hopped away, skipping along, as though 
nothing serious had happened. 

Presently the fairy asked Ido why he had come to her country. 
He told her everything that ever happened to him since he was a wee 
baby. He let her know, too, that he had always believed in fairies, 
and longed to travel from the time he could first recollect ; and he said 
to her that he had always desired to see the beautiful things of the 
world, especially the fairies, about whom he had so often heard, and 
the people who had lived in the Land of the North Light. He also 


106 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


related how his big brother Ibo, who would be king when his father 
died, had often laughed at him, saying he was a weak simpleton who 
could never do anything. And he further told the fairy that even his 
father had said : 

“Ido is such a little fellow he can never be of any account; he is 
so foolish to believe in fairies.” 

The Ice Fairy was touched by Ido’s simple manners, and his ear- 
nestness. She saw that, although he was small, he had a strong will, 
and a brave heart; was gentle, tender, and of a loving disposition. 
Even many of the tiny ice men and women stopped dancing, and 
looked up at Ido while he talked, as much as to say: 

“We have never seen such a nice little flesh fellow before.” 

When Ido had finished his story about himself, the fairy asked 
what he wanted her to do for him. 

“Oh, if you would only let me go to the Land of the North Light! 
I would be so happy, and so thankful to you all my life.” 

“That is not hard for me to do,” said the fairy; “for I am mistress 
of the ice-hills and all the plains you see stretching out behind you. I 
was born five million years ago, right here ; even before the mountains 
were made; even before the North Wind was thought of. My mother 
was Queen of the Snow Flakes, and my father was King of the Frost. 
My sister is the Snow Fairy, and I, who am the Ice Fairy, are all that 
are left of our family. I used to help good people, who believed in 
fairies, a long time ago, but since the birth of the King of the North 
Wind, and his wife, the Ice Witch, I have seen very few flesh people; 
Those merciless old creatures have continued, for so many ages, to 
pile up snow and ice, that few, indeed, are the human beings now 
willing to risk their lives by traveling in the North country. 

“But you want my help!” continued the fairy, ringing her little 
bells so furiously that the whole valley was filled with delightful music. 

At the call of the bells, the tiny men and women quit dancing, 
and hurried away and hid under big lumps of ice. The fairy then 
got into Ido’s sled and told him to drive on. They had scarcely 
started before Ido had fallen into a deep sleep. 


PART II. 


The Land of the North Light. 

When Ido awoke, he could not tell whether he had been asleep 
a day or a year, but he was lying on the ice, his seal skin under him, and 
the fairy standing by his side. When he missed his sled and the faith- 
ful animals, that had brought him so far, he asked what had become of 
them. 

“Never mind,” replied the fairy; “do as I tell you, but ask no 
questions.” 

Ido was such a believer in fairies that he obeyed without a fur- 
ther murmur. 

“Now,” continued the fairy, “I am going to grant your wish. You 
shall visit the Land of the North Light, but it is a long, long journey. 
You will be asleep, however, and will not awake until you shall have 
gone as far as I can send you. Then, you are to look for help from 
another. You must find a little white flower, shaped like my bells, 
which was named snow drop, thousands of years ago, in honor of my 
sister, the Snow Fairy; when you shall have found it, wind this around 
the stem” — she handed him a long golden cord — “and say: 

“ ‘Fairy of the snow drop fair. 

Whether on earth or in the air; 

Teach me how to find the way 
To the North Light’s brilliant ray.’ ” 

Ido repeated the words about a dozen times, so that he would be 
sure to remember them ; then, the fairy took his hand and led him to a 
solid wall of ice, which she touched with her wand. Immediately 


107 


108 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


a tunnel appeared, and in it stood a sled, made of sparkling crystal. 
Ido spread down his seal skin, got into the sled, and instantly became 
so sleepy that his eyes closed and he remembered nothing more until 
he found himself sliding down a steep snow-clad hill. 

When he had almost reached the bottom, he came to a patch of 
dry land; and there he stopped. Strangely enough, he saw, peeping 
from under the very edge of the snow the little white bell-shaped flower 
which the Ice Fairy had described. 

He wound the golden cord around the tiny snow drop, repeating 
as he did so the words the Ice Fairy had taught him. 

Presently a little white figure appeared and asked: 

“Who seeks the fairy of the snow drop?” 

“I do,” replied Ido. “The Ice Fairy sent me to you.” 

“Very well, then; you must, indeed, be a deserving boy if my 
cousin has been so kind,” said the fairy, stooping down and plucking 
the snow drop, the flower of which she divided into four parts; and 
handing them to Ido, she continued: “Eat one piece, rub one piece 
upon your eyes, and put one piece in each ear.” 

Ido obeyed the fairy, but quickly asked: 

“Why did you make me do that?” 

“Oh, I see, you are not unlike other boys,” replied the fairy. 
“You will ask questions.” 

“Oh, I didn’t mean to do it,” said Ido, somewhat frightened. 

“Do not be afraid: it wasn’t a great sin, only fairies don’t like to 
explain everything they do. I will forgive you this time, and answer 
your question. The snow drop will keep you from being hungry, make 
your eyes strong enough to stand the radiance of the North Light and 
enable you to understand the language of the strange people you are 
to meet.” 

“Oh! it’s to the Land of the North Light I want so badly to go,” 
said Ido. 

“I know that,” said the fairy. “I know what you desire, with- 
out the telling. Now listen, and follow my directions: 

“There is a deep, wide river running all around the Land of the 
North Light: when you reach it, cast in a pebble, and say: 


IDO, THE ICHO 


109 


“ ‘I’m from the Ice Fairy, 

Hi ho! 

I’m from the Snow Fairy, 

Hi oh, ho! 

Come, river men, come, bear me o’er, 

Hi oh, ho ho!’ ** 

The fairy then disappeared, and Ido marched away, looking for 
the river. When he had found it, he cast in a pebble, and slowly re- 
peated the fairy’s words. 

The water began to bubble like a boiling pot ; and out of it came 
thousands of queer-looking creatures, resembling spiders ; but they were 
very large, and as transparent as crystal. Each carried on its back a 
bundle, looking like a coil of small rope. They crawled up on the 
bank, scanning Ido with their big glass-like eyes, which never blinked 
nor closed. 

If Ido had not been a strong believer in fairies, he would have 
taken to his heels at once. He was not a bit frightened, however, at 
the ugly river men. 

They went to work, fastening one end of their cord-like webs to 
shrubs and trees, which lined the bank, and, when they had finished, all 
but one jumped into the river and swam off, leaving a web-bridge be- 
hind. The big fellow that had remained, stood on its hind legs, and, 
motioning Ido to follow, walked away over the bridge. Ido kept close 
behind, and in a few hours was on the other side, standing alone upon 
the bank. 

Now, his heart swelled as it had never done before. He knew 
that, at last, he was in the Land of the North Light! 

There was no snow ; there was no ice, and the climate was neither 
hot nor cold. The earth upon which he stood gave out a strange 
light, like that of the glow-worm. The trunks of the trees were almost 
transparent; the thin leaves, which rustled in the gentle breeze, resem- 
bled silver foil, and the fruit which grew upon some of the trees had 
the appearance of pendant stars. Even the flowers and the shrubs, 
which studded the river bank and filled the air with sweet perfume. 


110 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


were almost colorless. There were great clumps of bushes, covered 
with bursting buds which gave out soft halo-like lights. No matter in 
what direction Ido looked, everything that decked the earth, from tall 
trees to tiny sprigs of grass, emitted light; soft, gentle, yet ravishing 
light, akin to that which leaps up in the east each morning, just before 
the sun bursts out into a dazzling ball of fire and swallows up the rosy 
tints. 

The only living things Ido had seen were flocks of birds, that flitted 
in the boughs of the trees, shimmers of starlight, their mellow songs 
falling on his charmed ears so sweetly that he almost wept for joy. 

Ido felt that he could stay there forever, the breeze from the swift 
river fanning him, while at each turn of the eye the soft light seemed 
more soothing, and every new note from the birds thrilled him with still 
greater delight; but he remembered that the object of his long journey 
was to see the people of that strange country. 

Starting out across the hills, he soon came upon a crowd of men, 
women and children, dancing, singing and playing, in the shade of an 
immense spreading tree. 

The dress of the people of the Land of the North Light seemed 
peculiar to Ido, who had been used to nothing but skins of animals. 
The men wore bell-shaped hats, pink jackets, and short purple skirts 
which fell a little below the tops of their high boots. The women had 
on light blue bodices and gowns that seemed to have been made out of 
real rainbows. Their heads were covered with sparkling flowers, and 
their long silky, flaxen hair fell far down their backs. 

So varied were the costumes of the children that they presented the 
appearance of little elves, who were able to dress themselves in any way 
they pleased, simply by asking some fairy for what they wanted. 

When Ido’s presence was noticed, the children scampered away 
as though frightened, and the grown folks looked at him with so much 
astonishment depicted upon their faces, that he quietly said : 

“I am a traveler looking for the people of the Land of the North 

Light.” 

“Well,” replied one of the men, “you have found some of them. 
What do you want?” 


IDO, THE ICHO 


111 


“Oh, I don’t know,” said Ido, “that I want anything in particular. 
I am in search of the good and the beautiful, and I have always heard 
that the people in the Land of the North Light are both good and 
beautiful.” 

This speech pleased the strangers very much. They crowded 
around him, examining his seal skin clothing, asking all sorts of questions 
about the land of the Ichos. The inhabitants of the North Light re- 
gion had never heard of any country but their own, and had supposed 
there were no other people in the world. 

When the king heard of Ido’s arrival, he commanded that he be 
brought to the royal palace at once. 

Ido was delighted; for he had become deeply interested in every- 
thing in the Land of the North Light, and he wanted to see the king 
and the royal palace, especially, as he had been told a great deal about 
the goodness of the king, and the beauty of the royal palace. 

The country was a large one; and Ido had to travel a long dis- 
tance in order to reach the king’s palace; but the way of traveling in 
that country was so peculiar, and so new to him, that he never tired of 
it. He was taken to what the people called “The Roadway to the 
Royal Palace.” 

It was about as wide as an ordinary road, or street, but did not 
look like either. It had the appearance of a river of phosphorus. It 
moved along, giving out mellow, foam-like light, resembling that often 
seen behind a boat at night. There were two currents, side by side, 
going in opposite directions. Some people stood up chatting as they 
floated along, while others sat on benches, or reclined on great lounges 
made of sparkling grasses, which were provided for the comfort of 
travelers. 

Ido’s guide told him to step aboard; but Ido put his foot down as 
though he expected to sink into a river. He soon found that the stream 
of light was in reality as hard as the ground itself, and he wondered at 
the cause of its movement. His guide told him that the whole country 
was full of such roads, and that they had always been there, but nobody 
knew how they had been made. He sat on a bench and drifted along, 
passing through beautiful valleys, and over high hills. After several 


112 AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 

days thus spent, the road suddenly took a sharp turn, and led up a 
steep mountain. 

On reaching the top, a view of the royal palace burst upon Ido. 
There was a broad avenue, with rows of shimmering trees on either 
side, at the end of which the arched rainbow-like roof of the palace 
loomed up in hazy distance. In front, something like fifty yards from 
the entrance, there was a circular pool of water, fed by little sprays, 
which shot up from its border, reflecting rainbows, the shimmering 
trees, and the palace itself, making, altogether, a most gorgeous and 
beautiful sight. The road wound around, between the pool and the 
palace entrance, and along its side for fifty yards, stood the king’s 
body-guard. They were the tallest men in the kingdom, and were 
dressed in sparkling uniforms which looked as though they had been 
cut out of the sky in the night-time, when all the stars were shining at 
their best. They carried long lances, resembling big lighted candles, 
as they flickered in the soft mellow air. 

Reaching the palace, Ido alighted from the moving road, and was 
met by the king’s high chamberlain and several other persons of rank, 
and escorted into the throne-room, where the king and queen, coming 
down from the throne, bowed before him, the king saying: 

“Never before in the history of the Land of the North Light have 
we had a visitor from another country. Tell us, we pray thee, about 
yourself and your people.” 

Then Ido had to tell the king and queen all that had happened to 
him, and all he knew about the Land of the Ichos. 

The king was so much pleased with little Ido that he told him he 
should become an officer in his household. 

After quite a long talk, he ordered the high chamberlain to take 
Ido to the forest and have him dressed like the people of the Land 
of the North Light. 

The high chamberlain did as he had been bidden, and pretty 
soon Ido found himself in, what the people called, “The Forest of 
Frocks and Gowns.” 

There were trees on which jackets grew in great quantities; others 
from which hung hats in abundance; and still others from which the 






. 





JL_ - <* 

s 





IDO. THE ICHO 


113 


people gathered their short skirts and long boots. The high chamber- 
lain looked about among the trees, until he found a full suit of clothes 
to fit little Ido, and, after dressing him, took him back to the palace, 
where everybody who met him bowed low, taking off their hats, as he 
passed. 

Ido soon became a great favorite with everybody in the king’s 
household; and the king and queen learned to love him very dearly. 
They even promised him that when their youngest daughter became of 
age, he should marry her. 

The little princess had taken a great fancy to Ido, and they were 
constantly together, either playing in the great palace garden, or out on 
the mountain-side gathering the brilliant wild flowers which grew so 
abundantly there. 

One day, when they had gone farther than usual, and had stopped 
under a large spreading tree to rest, Ido told the little princess the story 
of Ibec and Aurora, just as he had heard it from his mother. How 
the King of the North Wind had once stolen a daughter of the King of 
the Land of the North Light, and carried her away to the palace of 
the Ice Witch, where Ibec, a chief of the Ichos, found her, and taking 
her to the Land of the Ichos, they were married and lived happily ever 
afterwards. 

“Why, that is so strange,’’ said the little princess. “The King 
of the North Wind used to be our enemy, sure enough; but ages ago — 
oh, I couldn’t tell you how long, he was caught, and he now lies fas- 
tened up in a cave, on this very mountain-side.’’ 

“Oh, I would like so much to see where the mean old King of 
the North Wind is imprisoned!’’ exclaimed Ido. 

“It isn’t far,’’ replied the little princess; “and if you want to see the 
place, I can show you the very spot.’’ 

Jumping up, they ran down the mountain, for a few hundred 
yards, when the little princess suddenly stopped in front of a large, 
whitish slab, sunk into the entrance of a cave. On the slab was writ- 
ten: “The King of the North Wind, the enemy of the people of the 
Land of the North Light, is imprisoned here.’’ 

Ido looked at the slab for a long time, and felt as though he were 


114 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


dreaming. Without knowing what he was about, he took hold of the 
bar that fastened the big rock slab, and gave it a sudden jerk. 

Down fell the bar ; and the door flew open and out rushed the old 
King of the North Wind, so quickly that neither the little princess nor 
Ido had time to think. Grabbing Ido by the hair, the old king jumped 
into a chariot of mist, and dashed away, high up towards the sky. 

The little princess fainted when she saw the old King of the North 
Wind rush off through the air, bearing little Ido, she knew not whither; 
but on recovering her senses, she ran to the palace as fast as her little 
legs would carry her, and told what had happened. 

The king and everybody else regretted Ido’s loss, but that did 
not trouble them nearly so much as the fact that the dreaded old enemy 
of the people of the Land of the North Light was loose again, and 
would be sure to return, and visit his wrath upon them. 

Messengers were sent all over the kingdom, announcing that the 
King of the North Wind had escaped from.his prison; telling, too, how 
he had been let out by Ido ; and the people were very sorry that Ido 
had ever visited their country. Indeed, many of them were angry, and 
declared that no other stranger should ever be allowed to put foot upon 
the soil of the Land of the North Light. 




PART III. 


The Wizard of the Ice. 

The King of the North Wind had not seen his wife, the Ice Witch, 
for, perhaps, a thousand years, and, of course, his first thought was to 
pay her a visit. 

Ido was dropped down upon the roof of the ice palace, while the 
old king roamed through the rooms looking for his wife. Luckily for 
Ido, she was not at home that day. 

Seeing an opening in the roof, Ido entered and proceeded to de- 
scend a winding stairway of solid ice. Presently, coming to a landing, 
he met a tiny polar bear, standing on its hind legs and showing its little 
white teeth, as though it meant to fight. Ido remembered that he still 
had the golden cord given him by the Ice Fairy, and taking it out, he 
grabbed the bear by the ear, quickly wrapping the cord around its neck. 
Immediately the funniest looking little man that ever was seen popped 
out of the bear’s skin! 

He wasn’t over six inches high ; his face was yellow and as hard 
as marble; his little eyes sparkled like diamonds, and his head was 
covered with kinky, red hair. He was dressed in a full suit of seal 
skin, which fitted so closely that it looked as though it had grown 
around him. 

As soon as he dropped out of the bear’s hide, he looked about, 
in a frightened way, and then asked Ido : 

“Was it you that let me out?’* 

“Yes,” replied Ido. 

“Then,” he went on, “you have seen the Ice Fairy and brought 
a charm from her; for there is no one else in the whole fairy-world that 
could release me. Where is the Ice Witch?” 


118 


116 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


“I don’t know,” replied Ido; ‘‘I have just been brought here by 
the King of the North Wind, and I am afraid that he and the Ice 
Witch intend to turn me into a bear or a reindeer.” 

“Ah, I see!” exclaimed the little man; “they are at their old 
tricks still.” Continuing, he said: “You have helped me, and now 
I am going to help you. You don’t know who I am? No, I am 
sure you do not. I am as old as the ice palace. Oh, yes, I am older, 
for I helped to build it. I am the Wizard of the Ice, and the Ice 
Witch was once my wife! She promised me when she married that 
she would love me always, and we built this beautiful palace to live in. 
But she deceived me, for no sooner had she met the King of the North 
Wind than she fell in love with him, and afterwards despised me. She 
even stole my magic wand, and turned me into a bear, and here she has 
kept me, guarding the stairway, for thousands upon thousands of 
years. 

“Oh, yes, you have helped me, and I shall help you!” he went on, 
wagging his head from side to side: “Take the bear skin out of which 
I have just fallen by the magic power of your golden cord; that will 
protect you against the power of the Ice Witch and all other witches 
in the world. You can destroy the Ice Witch forever, if you throw 
the magic skin in her face ; for a hide once worn by a wizard is the most 
powerful charm in the world. Should you want anything, wrap it 
around your eyes and wish for it. Should you desire to go anywhere, 
wrap it around your head and make a wish. All wishes come true 
to him who owns the skin of a wizard, and you are the only person in 
the world who now has one.” 

“But suppose I do destroy the Ice Witch, how can I escape the 
fury of the dreadful King of the North Wind?” asked Ido. 

“Oh, yes, I must tell you. I had almost forgotten him. He is 
a very bad old king; the worst and most unmerciful I ever knew; but 
I know the secret of his power. You have noticed his long flowing 
beard? Well, it is in that his strength lies. You must catch him and 
pull out his whiskers ; after that he will be able to do nothing but roam 
around and blow up snow storms.” 


IDO, THE ICHO 


117 


Ido then asked the Wizard of the Ice if he could do anything more 
for him. 

“No, no,” said the wizard; “if you only make sure of destroy- 
ing the Ice Witch, I can take care of myself, for then there will be 
left only one person having greater power than I have, and that person 
is the beautiful Fairy of the Ice, from whom you brought the charm.” 

Then, after looking at Ido for a second or so, the little old wizard 

said: 

“I believe I shall ask the Ice Fairy to be my wife, when the horrid 
Ice Witch is out of the way.” 

While they were thus talking a noise was heard below. The lit- 
tle old wizard said, in a whisper : 

“She is coming, beware of her power!” 

Then he ran up the steps towards the roof. 

Ido stood still upon the landing, while the Ice Witch’s feet were 
heard going pit-a-pat on the icy steps below. He did not have to wait 
very long before she came in sight. She was so much surprised at see- 
ing Ido, that a shiver ran over her and made her teeth chatter for a 
moment. But she soon recovered, and pointing her icicle-like fingers 
at him, said: 

“A reindeer fleet you shall be 
Before another sun you see.” 

But Ido, instead of becoming a reindeer, jumped forward, clapped 
the wizard’s skin over the old witch’s head, and she fell down, 
breaking into a hundred pieces. 

Instantly he heard loud peals of laughter, and, looking up, saw 
the little wizard coming down the steps, clapping his hands. Pres- 
ently he droned : 

“The old Ice Witch is dead — 

I have no one to dread; 

I can now go to bed 
And rest my little head — 

Oh! some fairy I’ll wed. 

And a mazy dance tread! — 

Ha, ha, ha!” 


118 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


“Now, before I go away, I must see the King of the North 
Wind,” said Ido. 

“He will soon be here,” replied the little wizard. “His chariot is 
banking up in the North .** 

Ido ran up the roof of the palace, and looking to the north, saw 
the clouds rushing towards him — the snow flying over the mountains 
furiously. 

He concealed himself behind a large piece of ice, which had been 
used by the old witch and the King of the North Wind to sit on at 
night. It was from this very ice-bench they used to watch the stars, 
when they were courting. 

In a little while the snow drops came flying down, eddying on the 
roof of the palace, then sailing off in big gusts of wind, to drift against 
a high mountain. Presently the old King of the North Wind dropped 
down on the block of ice, behind which Ido was concealed, panting as 
though he had blown nearly all the breath out of his mean old body. 

He had his back to Ido, but the strong wind blew his long whiskers 
around his head and far over his shoulders. Ido saw that now was his 
chance. Grabbing the waving beard with both hands, he gave a tre- 
mendous pull. Maddened by the pain, the old king jumped up so 
suddenly that his whiskers were drawn out by the roots, and left in Ido’s 
hands, while he sailed away, shrieking like a wild demon. 

That night a fearful storm raged; even the ice palace shook under 
its power, and ice mountains were blown down, while snow-drifts rose 
almost to the sky in some places. 

Ido then told the little wizard that he wanted to turn loose all the 
people that the old Ice Witch and the North Wind had made into 
frozen bears and reindeer. 

“The magic skin will release them, too,” said the wizard. “Shake 
it in their faces and they will resume their former shapes.” 

He took the wizard’s skin, and, going around, did as he had been 
directed. All the ice bears and reindeer vanished instantly, and he 
found himself surrounded by a large company of people who had been 
stolen from the Land of the North Light. They were so grateful to 
Ido for releasing them, that they offered to become his slaves, and go 
with him anywhere he might direct. 


IDO, THE ICHO 


119 


“No,*’ said Ido, “I want nothing in return for what I have done. 
It is not my power that has saved you. I owe it all to this little wizard/’ 
pointing, as he spoke, to his new friend. 

Then the whole company surrounded the old wizard and promised 
to do anything he might ask. 

“Oh, indeed it is not I that helped you. It was this little man” 
(pointing to Ido), “who seems to be so loved by the fairies, because 
he has such a good heart, that he can do almost anything. But I can 
tell him how to send you home to the Land of the North Light.” 
Then, turning to Ido, he continued : “Give each one a hair from the 
wizard’s skin and let him wish himself home.” 

Ido did as the wizard said, and in a few seconds the whole com- 
pany had disappeared, leaving no one but himself and the wizard. 

“Now,” said the wizard, “the best of friends must sometimes part, 
and I am sure you desire to go home, or to some one more congenial 
than this little body ” (touching himself on the chest), “but before you 
go, I want to say that you must always do as you have done in the past; 
be kind and just to everybody, and persevere in whatever you under- 
take.” 

As the little fellow ran into the castle, Ido put the wizard’s skin 
over his eyes, and wished himself in the Land of the Ichos. Hardly 
had the wish passed his lips before it was accomplished. 

When he took the skin from his eyes, he was standing in front of 
his father’s hut, in his native land. There before him were his father, 
his mother, and his brother Ibo, looking much as they did when he 
left; except his father and mother had grown older, and his brother 
Ibo was a tall, full-grown man. And there, too, stood Ido’s reindeer 
and dogs, which has disappeared when he was in the valley of the 
Ice Fairy! 

Ido had not grown a particle, in the meantime; he was the same 
weak-looking little fellow he had always been, with big quiet eyes, 
and kindly countenance. 

When his mother, father and brother saw him, dressed as he 
was in the costume of the people of the North Light, they were terribly 
frightened, for they had supposed him dead long ago, and now that 


120 AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 

he stood before them, they imagined he had returned from the Spirit 
Land. 

He spoke out, though, in the same sweet voice; and in his inno- 
cent child-like way, and then his father and mother knew that he was 
alive. 

They took him into the hut, where he sat down and told the 
story of his travels. They were charmed at his beautiful description 
of the Land of the North Light; and when he related how the fairies 
had helped him, they felt sorry that they, too, had not believed in 
fairies. 

His brother Ibo begged him to tell how to get to the beautiful 
country of the North Light. 

“For,” said he, “I am weary of this ice bound country, and would 
so love to find a beautiful princess who would become my wife, and 
let me live with her people, in the far North country.” 

“That can never be,” replied Ido. “You have scoffed at the 
fairies, and they would never help you. Without their help you can 
not hope to reach the Land of the North Light.” 

After spending two days with his people, being admired and 
envied by everybody in the Land of the Ichos, Ido thought of the 
sweet little princess he had left, in the country of the North Light, 
and taking out his wizard skin, wished himself with her. 

Instantly he woke up in the garden of the king’s palace, and 
standing by his side was the little princess, gathering flowers from a 
silver-like rose bush. 

She almost fainted when she saw Ido at her elbow. Anyhow 
she dropped her flowers, which had been stored in her little garden 
skirt, and said: 

“Oh, oh, oh! Is it you, Ido?” 

“Yes, it is I,” said Ido. And he grasped the little princess in 
his arms and kissed her. 

“I am so glad you have come back,” said the princess; “for I 
have been so unhappy without you; but I am afraid my father will 
never forgive you for turning the King of the North Wind loose. Oh, 
the people are so mad they would kill you if any of them should 
meet you!” 


















IDO, THE ICHO 


121 


“Come with me to the king,” said Ido, “I have some good news 
for him.” 

They went instantly to the royal palace, and sought the king at 
once. He came out looking surprised and somewhat angry; but be- 
fore he could speak, Ido said: 

“Call the queen, I have good news.” 

The queen came out; and, then, Ido told them how he had 
thoughtlessly let loose the King of the North Wind; how he had been 
carried away to the palace of the Ice Witch, where he killed the witch, 
destroyed the power of the King of the North Wind, and liberated 
all the people who had been stolen by him from the Land of the North 

Light. 

When the king heard this he said: 

“You have been a blessing to my kingdom, and not only will I 
give you my daughter in marriage, but, after me, you shall be king of 
the Land of the North Light, and rule over my people, who henceforth 
must be your people also.” 

Little Ido was proud and happy; he thanked the king and kissed 
the queen’s hand gratefully. 

In due time the king issued a proclamation, giving a grand feast 
at the royal palace, to which he invited all the people in the kingdom. 

When the great crowd had assembled, the king rose before them 
and gave his daughter in marriage to Ido, telling the people that after 
him, Ido would be their ruler. 

Everybody was delighted at what the king had said, and they 
rejoiced; singing, dancing, and making merry in a thousand ways. 

One thing they did, which always had been done on great oc- 
casions : the men went into the forest and gathered quantities of queer 
looking brush-wood, which they piled ten feet high, all over the 
mountain top. Then, they threw on the brush heaps quantities of 
fine sand, resembling gold dust. Immediately a soft and brilliant 
light arose, totally void of heat, but strong as the sunlight, which 
flashed and radiated high up into the sky. Wonder if that’s the light 
we so often see upon cold, clear nights? 








North " 7 

POLEj 









A SEQUEL TCflDQ'fflE ICHO* 


N OW, of course, you have read the story of Ido, the Icho. 

And, of course, you will remember that Ido destroyed 
the wicked old Ice Witch, and set free from the witch’s 
spell lots of people that she had turned into animals of 
various sorts. Of course, too, you will remember that 
Ido destroyed the power of the King of the North Wind to freeze up 
things, as he had done before, by pulling out his long white whiskers. 
And you cannot fail to recall that after Ido married the daughter of 
the King of the Land of the North Light, he was very happy. 

Well, now, I am very sorry to tell you, Ido’s good luck and 
happiness did not last very long. He had, unfortunately, neglected 
to destroy the power of another very wicked genius, when he might, 
perhaps, have done so, while at the palace of the Ice Witch. He 
failed to remember that the King of the North Wind had a son, who, 
though then young, was very powerful and growing stronger all the 
time. His name was Storm, and Ido had heard of him when he 
was a little boy. His mother had told him that Storm was at one 
time in love with Aurora, and got very mad and ugly because Ibec 
stole her from him. 

Although Storm was at the Ice Palace when Ido pulled out his 
father’s flowing whiskers, he did not show himself; because he was 
afraid Ido might be able, with the assistance of a magic wizard skin, 
which he possessed, to take away his power also. 


123 


124 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


In the midst of his great fear. Storm kicked up a tremendous 
noise, and ran away. He left the North country, and went far out 
upon the sea, where, in his rage, he blew up great billows of water, 
just for the bare pleasure of seeing what he could do, when mad. 

He kept roaming about the world, now and then going near 
the shores of some beautiful country, where he would fly into a ter- 
rific fit of anger, and destroy ships that carried merchandise and 
people, and, maybe, drown hundreds of toilers of the sea, who might 
be out fishing. 

Then, again, he would go off to the far South country, where 
he would try his power by destroying trees, houses, and everything 
that came within his reach, while his mad fit lasted. 

Then, he would wander out upon the great deserts, and there 
show his mean temper by piling up sand mountains, and by filling 
the air with hot burning grits that made it impossible for life to exist 
about him. 

Then, he would remain quiet for awhile; and, then, he would 
go to some other place, suddenly pouncing down upon the people, 
before they had time to protect themselves, causing great fright and 
loss of life. 

Thus did Storm continue to roam around the earth. 

It was at least ten years after Ido had married the daughter of 
the King of the Land of the North Light, before Storm once thought 
of going back to inquire about his old father, the King of the North 
Wind, or to look again upon the cold bleak country, in which he had 
been born. 

The thought of returning to the North country finally came upon 
Storm very suddenly; and, right away, he rose high up in the air, 
rushing on till he dropped down close to where now the North Pole 
stands. 

For quite a time he behaved himself, while he looked around 
hoping to find some one who might know something of the fate of his 
old father, the King of the North Wind, and who might tell him 
what had become of Ido, the young Icho, who had so dreadfully pun- 
ished his father by pulling out his whiskers. 

But Storm could not keep his temper long at a time; so, feeling 


STORM, THE SON OF THE NORTH WIND 125 


mad and discontented, he thought to quiet himself by stirring up the 
waters, which pour from the ocean, over the floating ice, far into the 
North seas and bays about the North Pole. 

When he had torn down a few ice-hills, and reached the un- 
frozen water, he discovered a tremendous Walrus, floundering around, 
trying to get out of the reach of danger. Instantly Storm threw the 
big Walrus upon a high bank of ice, and, cooling off, floated around 
in the air awhile, watching the Walrus gasp for breath. 

Then, greatly to the surprise of Storm, the Walrus spoke to him, 
saying : 

“Why should you take me from the water, where alone I can 
enjoy life, and place me upon this cold bank of ice, when never in all 
my life have I done anything to harm you?” 

“Oh, I am not particular whether you have been good or bad, 
kind or unkind to me,” replied Storm. “I always act upon impulse; 
I slash up things anywhere, and any time, just because I feel like it. 
It’s fun for me.” 

“Well, down in the water where I was bred and born, and where 
I have spent a long life,” said the old Walrus, “living things do nothing 
that causes suffering, just for the fun of it. They are guided by 
instinct in doing what they may do, to say the least; and I have found, 
by acting in that way, even a Walrus can get along better than if he 
just ran madly about, and spent his life trying to do all the harm he 
could.” 

“I never heard such talk before,” replied Storm. “I have never 
asked any favors, and I do not grant any. Besides, I have been a 
little unfortunate in my life. When I was quite a little boy, and 
before I had the strength I now possess, my old father, the King of 
the North Wind, was suddenly pounced upon, by a little creature 
having two arms, who, at one jerk at his whiskers took away his 
power to freeze up things and to make this North country the beau- 
tiful place it had always been before.” 

“Oh, I see,” returned the Walrus. “You have a grievance. 
Somebody has wronged you, and, therefore, you think you should 
wrong everybody else. What if I could tell you something about 


126 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


your old father? Would that induce you to put me back into the 
water?” 

“What do you know about him?” asked Storm. “How is it 
possible that you can see what is going on in the North country, when 
you bury yourself deep in the water, far under great blocks of ice that 
are forever floating in these seas?” 

“I do not think,” replied the Walrus, “that you, who seem to 
be so anxious to find your father, should spend time in trying to make 
me tell how I know things. It seems to me that you should be satis- 
fied, and agree to do a good turn for me, if I tell you the truth. 
What difference should it make to you why a thing is true, if you 
know it to be true?” 

“Oh, well, maybe that’s so,” returned Storm. “Alright, go 
ahead; and if you do tell me where I may find the King of the North 
Wind, I agree to give you your liberty and put you back into the 
water.” 

“That’s a bargain,” said the Walrus. “Now, then, go to the 
North Pole itself and blow off the surface of the snow, and you will 
find the King of the North Wind reclining upon a large slab of ice, 
with a big block for a pillow. He has been sleeping there ever since 
he lost his whiskers, having been told by a big old moose, which 
wished to get him out of the way, that such a course would make his 
whiskers grow again.” 

Storm did not wait to hear any more. Off he whisked, as fast as 
he could fly, to the very spot named by the Walrus; and, with one big 
puff, he blew away the snow, and there, sure enough, lay his old 
father with his eyes closed, apparently in a deep sleep. Storm prodded 
him with a few big lumps of ice, when he opened his eyes and stared 
for quite a while, before saying anything. Then the old king took 
a big lump of ice and rubbed his forehead and face, finally bawling 
out: 

“Where did you come from? I supposed you were dead.” 

“Oh, I am from everywhere,” said Storm. “I have been about 
to see the world for the last ten years.” 

“Yes, I expect that’s so,” said the old King of the North Wind. 
“It is often the case that people will go off to see the world, when 


STORM. THE SON OF THE NORTH WIND 127 


matters of duty require that they should be at their homes. You knew 
that I had suffered a great calamity, by the loss of my whiskers, and, 
like an ungrateful wretch, you deserted me, and went away to see the 
world, caring not a bit whether I ever regained my power. Do you 
think that’s the way a dutiful son should act?” 

‘‘Say, now, father,” replied Storm, in as gentle tones as he could 
possibly employ; ‘‘don’t be too hard on me. After seeing what had 
been done to you, I was afraid that unless I got away pretty quick, 
our entire family would be destroyed.” 

‘‘Well, don’t let us waste words over things that are past,” replied 
the old King of the North Wind. ‘‘Get to work, and see if you 
cannot help me in some way. I have been lying here, for goodness 
knows how long, under the advice of an old moose that I had faith in, 
but, so far, I see no signs of ever getting my whiskers back.” 

*‘I have an idea,” said Storm. ‘‘I have just had a long talk with 
a Walrus that beats anything I ever ran across in all my life. He told 
me just exactly where I could find you, and, maybe, he can tell me 
how you can get back your whiskers, and, with them, your former 
power of freezing up things in general.” 

‘‘Well,” retorted the old King of the North Wind, “don’t lose 
any more time. Go and see the Walrus; and let me know quickly if 
I may ever expect to be myself again. Oh, how I do want to blow a 
really cold blast 1” 

Off Storm sailed, and he didn’t lose a second before finding the 
Walrus, telling him what had taken place between him and his 
father. 

The Walrus was in a very good humor, but getting mighty thirsty. 
He said at once ; 

“Why, of course, I can restore your father’s whiskers. Indeed, 
I can do almost anything I choose towards helping the kings and 
princes of the elements, but I would prefer to get back into the water 
to anything I know right now. I’m thirsty.” 

“You may certainly get back, and very quickly, too,” replied 
Storm, “if you will but tell me how the King of the North Wind may 
regain his lost whiskers.” 

Thereupon the Walrus directed Storm to go to the ruins of the 


128 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


Ice Palace, where Ido had killed the Ice Witch, and look all about in 
the crushed ice for the eye-tooth of the Ice Witch. He would know 
it when he saw it, because it was shaped like a spear, with barbs upon 
it, and, while it sparkled like ice, it was so hard that it could not be 
melted or broken. (In fact the tooth was a diamond, which the old 
witch had found at one time in her life, and which she always kept 
in her jaw, and from which she got magic power to control her hus- 
hand, the King of the North Wind.) “This tooth,” continued the 
Walrus, “when inserted in your father’s jaw, will bring out his whiskers 
at once.” 

Storm sailed over to the ruins of the palace of the Ice Witch, and 
lifting up every piece of ice in the heap, sifted it in the air, until 
finally, sure enough, he came upon the witch’s eye-tooth, finding it 
just as the Walrus had described it. 

He seized the tooth and flew to the North Pole. 

The King of the North Wind grabbed the tooth and put it into 
his mouth. Instantly his whiskers began to grow, and in a few minutes 
they were just as long as they had ever been. The old King of the 
North Wind jumped up and almost blew Storm away, so great was 
his joy over his regained power. 

Storm went back to the Walrus, and after safely putting him into 
deep water, closing the ice over him, he rejoined his father. 

They had quite a long talk about what they should do to punish 
Ido for the misfortunes which he had brought upon them. 

They knew where the Land of the North Light was, and they de- 
cided that they would get to work at once, and try to destroy the 
entire country, and everybody in it. 

Storm was sent out to find all the whales in the seas, while the 
old King of the North Wind began to blow, and freeze everything 
about the North Pole which had began to melt while he lay powerless 
without his whiskers. 

Storm found, within a few days, over ten million whales of 
enormous size. He made them get in line, and they stretched en- 
tirely across the Atlantic Ocean. Then he said to the whales: 
“Blow.” 

The whales began to spout while Storm summed up all the 


STORM, THE SON OF THE NORTH WIND 129 


power at his command and, as the whales continued to spout up great 
volumes of water. Storm lifted a tidal wave, which floated on, and 
on, toward the North country. When it reached the seas and the 
bays, near the North Pole, the King of the North Wind joined 
Storm, and began to freeze up all the water which he and the whales 
had pushed along. 

Higher and higher rose the water; and fiercer and fiercer blew 
the old king, until finally a great mountain of ice had been formed. 
Then Storm and the King of the North Wind got behind this big 
pile of ice, and soon began, by united effort, to move it forward. 

On and on they rushed the huge mass of ice, the movement making 
a noise like deep thunder as it went forward. 

When the people of the Land of the North Light saw great ice 
blocks gradually coming towards their fair and beautiful country, 
they were terribly frightened. Ido tried to quiet them by telling them 
that he could stop the advance of the ice by the use of a magic wizard 
skin, which he always kept with him. 

Ido was mistaken, however. He soon discovered that nothing 
he knew of could check the sure and steady approach of the ice bank, 
which would surely bury him and his people unless they flew from it. 

When the ice reached the river that flowed around the Land of 
the North Light, and choked up that swift stream, and when the top of 
the ice mountain began to topple over into the fair country, destroying 
the beautiful trees and the green fields and the thousands of domestic 
animals and birds that were there, Ido said to his people : 

“My dear friends, there is but one possible way of escape. We 
must quickly get together everything we can carry, and fly from our 
country, or not a one of us will be left alive. 

Ido’s advice was taken; and all the people, men, women and 
children, left the Land of the North Light, and tramped, with sad 
faces, towards the South, passing on as rapidly as possible, hoping to 
soon reach a place of safety. 

Not so, however. Day after day they would find that the great 
ice mountain had kept up with them, and was just as near as when 
they first began to run from it. On and on the people of the Land 
of the North Light, headed by Ido, continued to go; but no matter 


130 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


how fast they ran, there loomed up still, and very close to them, too, 
the threatening ice heap. 

The race between the ice mountain, which was being pushed for- 
ward by the King of the North Wind and his son Storm, and the 
people of the Land of the North Light, continued for many years; 
and there was no rest for Ido and the remnant of his people who had 
not been killed by the terrible cold, or crushed by the toppling over 
of the ice mountain, until they had gotten a long way down into the 
country which is now known as Illinois and Missouri. 

When it seemed to Ido that the whole earth would be overrun 
by the great ice wave, he felt disposed to give up the battle and lie 
down and die. 

While he was in a most sorry and despondent mood, he cast his 
big fishing hook into the Mississippi River, near where St. Louis now 
stands, hoping to get something for himself and his people to eat. In 
a few moments he had hooked an enormous catfish. 

It took four men, besides Ido, to land the great fish; and when 
he had got him safe upon the banks of the river, the Catfish screamed, 
and made such a strange noise that everyone except Ido was frightened 
away. 

Ido, however, imagined the fish was trying to speak to him; and, 
after taking the hook from his mouth, sure enough the Catfish did 
speak; and Ido understood him, because in those days Mississippi 
River catfish spoke in all languages. 

He begged Ido to put him back into the river. Whereupon Ido 
told him that it would not help him much, even if he did get back into 
the river: 

“It will be but a few days now,” Ido went on to say, “before 
your water, and all the land hereabout, will become covered with ice ; 
and so great will become the cold that nothing can live, whether in the 
water or on the land.” 

“Why, what do you mean?” asked the Catfish. “Is it possible 
that Sirocco is dead?” 

“Who is Sirocco?” asked Ido. 

“Why, Sirocco,” replied the Catfish, “is the Queen of the South 
Wind, and she never allows the North Wind people, or any of their 


mmmsmmm 












STORM, THE SON OF THE NORTH WIND 131 


frozen water, to reach this country.” (There had never been any ice 
in Illinois or Missouri territory before that time.) 

‘‘Well,” said Ido, “I would certainly like to find Sirocco. If 
she could save us from the terrible fate, which is threatened by the 
approach of the high mountain of ice, she would make us her slaves 
forever.” 

When the Catfish told Ido that, by sailing down the river, to the 
spot where the Missouri emptied into the Mississippi, and, getting a 
tub full of water, just where the two rivers intermixed, he might, by 
boiling the water hard, call up the spirit of Sirocco, he did so at once. 

And out of the mist, which arose from the boiling water, out of the 
great fog which overspread the surrounding country, Ido heard the 
voice of Sirocco, asking: 

‘‘Who has called me, and what do you want?” 

Then Ido told to Sirocco, with tears in his eyes, the terrible 
experience of his people with the King of the North Wind, and the 
approaching great ice wave that threatened to destroy the world. 

Sirocco answered in a tone like that of an enormous fog horn, which 
may even yet be heard upon the Mississippi, that she had been so 
busy in the far South, for the last ten years, that she had not known 
of the attempt of the old King of the North Wind to pile up ice upon 
the section of the country over which she had always ruled. 

“Be not afraid,” she went on. “Go to your people and rest in 
peace. I will attend to the King of the North Wind, and before 
very long you may again go further North, and, maybe, some day, 
back to your own country.” 

Then the hot winds of the South began to blow, and the great 
ice mountain, under the stinging, sizzling heat, gradually began tq 
melt away, rivers of water flowing here and there and everywhere 
almost deluging that part of the country now known as the Middle 
West. 

On went the fight between the King of the North Wind and his son 
Storm, and Queen Sirocco of the South Wind, one side freezing up and 
pushing forward a mountain of ice, and the other side melting it with 
hot blasts. 

These tactics continued for ages, and Ido’s descendants, by the 


132 


AMERICAN FAIRY TALES 


assistance of Sirocco, were able to get far back towards the Land of the 
North Light, but never quite there. 

They are even at this day hopeful that the time will come when 
their once beautiful country will be restored to them. 

They are now known as the Esquimos, and live in ice huts, as 
close to the land of their forefathers as they are allowed to go. 

Storm long ago deserted his old father, the King of the North 
Wind, and has since pranced around the world stiring up trouble, now 
and again, everywhere. 

Who knows but that Sirocco will yet vanquish the King of the 
North Wind, and give to the descendants of the Esquimos the lovely 
spot once inhabited by that happy race, known as The People of the 
Land of the North Light. 


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